I BET the director of Preston Bus has a nice cosy parking space right outside his office!

And the chair of highways at the county council, I bet he doesn't have far to walk to work.

I would like to see them use the park and ride at Strand Road, just for a week. Then they might realise the problems of the ridiculous system they have set up.

Once again workers are being penalised for doing just that - working.

For some reason the cost is staggered and if you use the park and ride before 9.45am, it costs over twice as much as the 70p charge for using it after 9.45am. But if you don't get there by around 10.30am, it is full. So between 9.45 and 10.30, it is chaos, with queues of cheap-rate commuters stretching right round the car park.

Is this how it is supposed to work? It's ridiculous. How do you expect to keep cars out of town when the alternative is a sham?

If there were just one fare, maybe £1, they would still get the same profits, but it would be more evenly used and a better service.

I'm sure the authorities that be would hail the park and ride as a great success. And so it is. But only because there is no viable alternative if you happen to live outside the bus routes.

If you do risk parking in town, it will cost a fortune and you will probably spend hours queuing to get out.

I suppose the alternative is to do my Christmas shopping in Chorley or Garstang!

Disgruntled commuter

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.