Tag: transport

  • Silly Not to Mask

    Silly Not to Mask

    Reading Time: 2 minutes

    On Sunday, less than a week ago I was on a train. I could hear someone coughing, and coughing. She sat in the seats a set of seats in front of the group of people I was with. I could hear the bronchial cough and I considered masking but didn’t and now I regret it.

    Over the last two days I have had a sore throat and last night I didn’t sleep much so I chose to listen to podcasts with my eyes closed.

    At Four AM I was meant to get up to run at 0530 but aborted that idea. If I had run in this state I might have been sick, and I would have suffered. It would have been nice to run with such a brilliant moon. I can try next year.

    Some people might find it paradoxical that I consider this a victory. Usually when I hear someone coughing, whether in shopping centres, or trains, even outdoors, I mask. This time I didn’t mask and that’s a victory. It’s a victory because I controlled my reflex to mask. It’s a victory because it’s normal to catch a cold every so often.

    On the flipside if I had not caught this cold I could have run this morning in the moonlight, and tomorrow I could hike to La Dôle, and then on Sunday I could walk in the Canton of Geneva. Now I have the frustration of not knowing how long I will feel sub-optimal.

    And Finally

    I see this as a pyrrhic victory because I resisted the urge to mask, which is great because I’m normal, but at the same time I could have avoided falling sick. Not masking in this context was absurd. I find the masks I wear comfortable. From now on I will feel more confident in masking in situations where I calculate there is a risk. Despite not being on top form I still managed to write a normal blog post today.

  • Linear Bike Rides and Trains

    Linear Bike Rides and Trains

    Reading Time: 2 minutes

    Yesterday I was watching the Tour De Romandie Morges to Morges stage and I was struck by how much of the route I am familar with. It’s not just that I’m familiar with the route that I road with the group, but that I’m familiar with parts of the full tour. Over the years I have ridden between Geneva and Aubonne so many times that I know many of the roads well. I demonstrated this yesterday by recognising most of the roads the women road along.

    I took the train to Morges with the bike, to avoid tiring myself out before the ride itself. It worked well. Now that I know this I can look for new options and ideas. I was thinking of riding from Yverdon-les-Bains to Nyon but then I came across another loop. Payerne to Rolle. The route they recommend is split in two stages, Payerne to Echallens and then Echallens to Rolle. The full ride is 86km in length with 1250 meters of climbing and 1300m of descent.

    Another route could be the Foot of the Jura ride from Yverdon-les-Bains to Bière, and from Bière to Nyon rather than Geneva. The issue with this route is that some it could be on busy roads, especially on a Saturday.

    A third routing option is number five that would go from Yverdon-les-Bains to Lausanne, but when I get near Penthaz I would catch route 63 towards Rolle but I would then want to catch route 488 after detouring by Vufflens le Chateau to see the castle and heading along agricultural roads to Nyon. I think this could be the nicest route. The advantage of stitching together several routes is that you can take the roads that should have less traffic, and less climbing where possible. The other advantage is that if you choose a route that is well sign posted then you do not need to use on-board navigation because road signs will be enough.

    And finally, whether I do this will depend on the weather and how tired I feel. I can feel that my legs still want a few days of rest before taking on a new challenge. This would be a long day in the saddle. According to the route I drew the route is around 75.5km with 600m of climbing and 630 of descent and should take three and a half hours to complete. My aim would be to follow the route markers up to the point where I see markers for the next route I want to follow. I have mapped it to work as if I was driving from one place to another. Now I need to wait for good weather.

  • Shopping With an E-Scooter

    Shopping With an E-Scooter

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    Over the years I have enjoyed driving to the shops with a petrol driven scooter for daily shops. I liked that it was small, light and convenient. I only got rid of it, after sixteen years of use because of the cost for a service. Usually it was about 500 but I was quoted 500 CHF, so that’s when I decided to be done with it.

    For a while I had no scooter, until I found an [Ocean Drive E9](https://www.galaxus.ch/en/s3/product/ocean-drive-e9-20-kmh-30-km-350-w-e-scooters-standing-37213177) or similar e-scooter. This isn’t a sit down scooter. This is a standing one. Before ownning this one I had tremendous fun with a foot scooter, using it to get to the bus, and train, and then heading to work, and sometimes riding down from Grand Saconnex to Cornavin for fun. It was really enjoyable to use.

    ## The Sensation

    The E-scooter is different. For a start an e-scooter is limited to 20km/h. This does sometimes feel quite slow, especially on a busy road with cars overtaking every so often. It’s better on cycle lanes, than on roads without cycle lanes.

    One of the things you realise, on an e-scooter, is that the roads are not as smooth as you think. There are small cracks and undulations in the road surface which can be quite jarring, and theoretically throw you forwards, if you are not careful.

    I like to ride mine on agricultural roads, rather than normal roads, to be seperate from car traffic as far as possible. When you’re standing on a scooter going at 20 on a normal road with cars passing by you wish you could get more speed. With a bike you can, within reason.

    ## Why An E-Scooter, Rather than an Electric Seated Scooter?

    The reason for choosing a standing foot scooter rather than a sitting scooter is price and range. Electric sitting scooters cost thousands of francs and have a range of 20-30km. This is the same range as the standing e-scooter with one major disadvantage.

    With the foot scooter you can fold it and catch a train. This means that although you have a 20km range with both machines, the range, if you can catch a train, is unlimited. If you combine the train with an electric foot scooter then you have great flexibility.

    ## Food Shopping with an E-scooter

    Food shopping with an e-scooter requires one key thing. Remembering that you have limited storage, and that weight plays a role in balance. That’s why you take a basket, rather than a chariot. If it fits in the basket it should fit in the bag.

    On this shopping trip I didn’t buy drinks because that instantly takes a lot of space, and adds a lot of weight. Despite having the larger hiking bag on my back I felt comfortable. During the summer months this is definitely a good option for food shopping.

    ## The Alternatives

    There are two key alternatives. The publibike bikes that are available nearby or buses. The advantage of the publibike bike is that some are electric so downhill you can go as fast as you can pedal, but uphill they are limited to 25km/h, or faster if you have the leg strength. The drawback is that it costs 3 CHF per half hour so it costs as much as the bus.

    The bus is another alternative but the drawback with the bus is that you would need to rush to do your shopping within 20 minutes to catch it back, depending on where you plan to shop, and what alternatives exist.

    ## And Finally

    The e-scooter is cheaper than a bike, and more flexible than a bus. It allows you to run errands at a location two kilometres away, with ease. It’s good to remember that the more weight you have on your back, the more you may feel it, and thus the more uncomfortable you may be. Having said that, for today’s shopping it was fine.

  • By Train or By Car

    By Train or By Car

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    For many years I could go to work by car so I did, because I had a parking. When I worked for other employers I took the train for a simple reason. Parking near work would cost 36 CHF per day whereas taking the train would cost about 14.50 CHF per day. I stopped using the car to commute for a simple reason, the cost of parking

    [20min](https://www.20min.ch/fr/story/pendulaires-les-trains-ny-peuvent-rien-les-suisses-saccrochent-a-la-voiture-103116691?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Facebook#Echobox=1717042499) just had an article about how the Swiss are bad at leaving the car at home, to replace it by the car, and for me there are two reasons. The first is that if parking at work is free, then you might as well take the car as it’s more convenient.

    The second reason is that travelling by car, although often in traffic jams is still faster than going by train. By car you drive for 45 minutes from Gingins to Geneva, but by train it would often take one and a half hours by train, especially on the return journey.

    The connection between Nyon and Geneva is now 13 minutes but that’s because all the smaller train stations are now ignored by most trains. This means that it could be easier to drive, or cycle, than take public transport.

    The problem with cycling is that you need a safe place for the bike. You also need safe routes to get from A to B. If the bike is stolen, or if you get bullied by cars, then you are less likely to cycle.

    Another issue is that people don’t realise how short journeys could be, on foot, if they live in Geneva, but take buses or trams. In London and Rome I found that if I took the tube or metro I would have no sense of how close places were, if only I took the time to walk between them.

    ## P&R CFF Parking

    A few days ago I went for a hike. I went by car, not because I didn’t want to take the train, but because, as I have a foot injury I prefer not to walk to far. Ironically I skipped the walk from home to Nyon, but walked over 16kms once at destination.

    That’s not the point. The point is that if Park and Ride (P&R) parkings cost five francs for 24 hours, then the decision to take the train is simplified. It costs 5 CHF for 24hrs in La Sarraz and [12 CHF per day in Nyon](https://www.parking.ch/fr/parkings/nyon/p-und-rail-nyon).

    ## Expanding the A1 and Commuters

    The Swiss want to expand the A1 motorway but this will worsen the problem rather than fix it. They will add a lane of traffic but in a decade or so, and the works will take years, and by the time it is finished it will be inadequate again. Rather than spend billions on expanding the A1 motorway they should improve transport to and from villages. During the day you have one bus per hour except at rush hour. This means that buses are less convenient than the car.

    ## And Finally

    The car is great for when you’re climbing or doing Via Ferrata, as well as when you’re doing loops. When you’re doing linear hikes the train becomes far more appealing, because the logistics are simple. Take the train to the start point and then take the train from the end point. With a car you would need to plan where to park the car, rather at the end or the beginning, and whether to do it with one or two cars. One being at the start and the other at the end.

    Commuting by train makes sense, unless you’re working shifts.

    I recently renewed my Demi-Tarif so that I could take trains for various hiking activities, especially linear hikes.

  • On the Potential of Self-Driving Cars

    Reading Time: 3 minutes

    When people write about self-driving cars they write from the perspective of people living in cities. I live in the Swiss countryside at the foot of the Jura which results in me seeing the potential of self-driving cars differently. For a start at the moment buses operate from 5 in the morning to 9 in the afternoon. There is a tow hour gap at lunchtime when there is no service and at other times the frequency is once an hour, except at rush hour. When self-driving cars are available I see the bus and taxi services being discontinued. I also see the space dedicated to parking in cities vanishing.

    I see cars being used to connect villages to town. You get into the self-driven car and it takes you to the train station. From the train station in Nyon you get to Geneva or Lausanne. From Geneva or Lausanne you have trains and buses to take you to your final destination if you are either recovering from an injury or carrying too much weight. Scuba diving and winter sports require a lot of gear so a self-driven car would be helpful.

    I also see self-driving cars as being great for teenagers living in the countryside. Self-driving cars will provide a 24 hour per day transportation. This means that teenagers will be able to take the last train home and catching a self-driven car from the train station to home.

    I see this as being just as useful for grown ups who like to have more than one drink when out socialising with friends. For now society believe in designated drivers. With self-driving cars the designated driver will be a thing of the past. The train will transport you from the train station to your home. It will also provide country bumpkins with the opportunity to stay out even after the last train. It will equalise city slickers and country bumpkins.

    On weekends when groups meet up to do activities self-driving cars will be of great use. At the moment when you hike or do Via Ferrata there is a need for wide open spaces where cars can be parked and sit for hours. Self-driving cars would bring people to the hiking or via Ferrata base and drop people off. These cars will be able to return to active use in the region until activity participants return to the starting point ready to return home.

    Car ownership would be replaced by car allocation. For now when cars are not used they are parked and space is used for them to get in and out of that parking space. Space is also needed for the car driver and passengers to get in. When cars drive themselves that space will no longer be needed. Car will be parked as they are on ferries. Only a few centimeters are left between cars and unloading is one row or row at a time. Parking could be designed to maximise space and efficiency.

    Mobile phones and smart watches can also be used to increase efficiency at rush hour. When two or more people are heading from the same train station to the same village their smart devices will see this and allocate a parking bay or vehicle with a display to show the name of the destination village. For now the limitation with buses is that they have a set route. If you are at the end of the route you have to wait for everyone to be dropped off and this can add minutes to your journey time. Self-driven cars you would be routed straight to your village square and walk from there.

    The point of self-driving cars would be to minimise waiting times. Rather than wait from half an hour to an hour for a bus you would be taken home within 10 minutes of arriving at the train station.

    Cities and traffic lights today are designed for human drivers, whether for trams, buses, cars, cyclists, pedestrians or motorbikes. In the self-driven future we could do away with traffic lights. Traffic flow in cities will be reduced because trains and public transport will make it easy and convenient to get from point A to point B. In a city like Geneva where the system is nodal from the centre out we would have private transport to go between distances where a 15-minute walk is needed. The point is to reduce the need for people to go from the periphery to the centre and then back out to the periphery.

    The point of self-driving cars would be to maximise network efficiency and provide people with a smooth and efficient way to commute and participate in social activities. It should equalise life for city slickers and country bumpkins. The purpose of self-driven cars should be to maximise use of the existing infrastructure whilst making the last mile more convenient and flexible.