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Central line moan

Ariadne

13:02 / 21.02.03

Sigh. I'm fed up and just feel like a moan.

I live in Leytonstone, which is on the Central line. (For anyone outside London -- the Central line had a crash in January and has been completely closed since then) Getting to and from town means getting a bus, which is usually late or overcrowded to the point of breathlesness, and then a tube that takes me far from where I want to be. Every journey takes at least an hour and a half instead of the 30 minutes I was used to.

And now it looks like it might be April or even May before it's fixed. Wah! This is making me late for work and totally messing up my social life and there's nothing at all i can do about it. This post is just an online version of stamping my feet and huffing.

sleazenation

13:10 / 21.02.03

have you thought about getting the bus/ taxi to walthamstow and using the victoria line as an alternative? less bus time involved there...

Ariadne

13:14 / 21.02.03

Thanks, Sleaze. I usually do that in the morning, actually, and the traffic makes it a long bus ride. I've also tried the overland to Blackhorse Road, but then it's so busy at BR that I have to get the tube back to Walthamstow and start again from there...

Sax

13:31 / 21.02.03

Why not get yourself a car, woman? Nice Mini Cooper. You could whizz along the terraces, across the piazzas, up on the roofs, down a flight of stone steps and be in work in ten minutes.

Ganesh

13:32 / 21.02.03

Give or take Congestion Charging, gridlock and road rage...

Ariadne

13:33 / 21.02.03

And pay a fiver a day congestion charge. Sigh. If I could just give up pubs and other evening jollies then I could cycle.

Sorry everyone, I'm just in a woe-is-me frame of mind. I need a beer...

Ganesh

13:39 / 21.02.03

Stop Central Line-ing and adapt.

Ariadne

13:42 / 21.02.03

LOL. Very clever, Mr Ganesh.

Ah well, the lovely Loomis is about to turn up from the frozen North. And it's my birthday this weekend so lots of yummy presents. And the sun's come out.

Wow, it worked. I stopped moaning.

Hattie's Kitchen

13:43 / 21.02.03

I have seen people roller-blading to work...and you can hang on to the back of lorries and cabs and get there even faster.

Sax

14:03 / 21.02.03

You could always try the Central Lime.

Ariadne

14:05 / 21.02.03

That took you *how* long?

Hee hee. Am quite cheered up now, thank you all. It's still a pain in the arse but I no longer feel so gloomy.

Sax

14:06 / 21.02.03

I just didn't want to look predictable. Give someone else a chance.

Shortfatdyke

14:14 / 21.02.03

Throw a sickie 'til May?

Really, it's a crap situation and since I left London I've been wondering how on earth I ever managed to get anywhere, even on a good day. I don't suppose your job could involve working at home, at least for part of the time? Or more flexible working hours, so you can travel at quieter times?

Oh, by the way - !HAPPY BIRTHDAY! for whenever it is over the weekend. Have a fab one!

Ariadne

14:18 / 21.02.03

Thanks, sfd! It's on Sunday and should be fun.

And yes, I worked at home for part of this week (thought it gets lonely, and I trail back and forth to the kitchen all day), and work have been pretty patient about my turning up late on other days. Their patience may wear thin if this goes on for months, though. Like mine.

I just read that I should be getting a refund cheque though, so that would be cool. I wonder how much?

Kit-Cat Club

08:33 / 22.02.03

Oh, the busses, the busses. I used to use them for my journey to work last summer on a regular basis - it used to take me two hours to get from Muswell Hill to Hammersmith, and I had to leave the house at seven to be absolutely sure of getting in to work by half past nine. On one memorable occasion I had to get off the bus at Bond Street and catch the tube anyway - it was quarter past nine...

Whinge whinge, it's all over now, and I did get a lot of reading done, but oh my. The Horror. So, um, I feel your pain...

Mourne Kransky

08:56 / 22.02.03

According to the London News last night, there is good news and bad news for you, Frustrated of Leytonstone:

Bad News is they still have no idea how to fix the engine-falling-off problem which caused the Chancery Lane derailment.

Good News is they're getting so much grief from the commuting public, that they're going to start up the Central Lane again anyway (but not for a couple of months).

So that's all right then!

See, if you lived in the Elysian swamplands of Sarf Landan... Must say the new bendy buses are rather fab and so many of them.

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