The young people of today need independence, and to a large extent they are allowed it. Almost all teenagers I know are allowed into Gloucester, even from where we live about 13 miles from the city. Often parents' plans do not coincide with ours, and we have to use public transport. But just how good is this service? Does it meet the needs of the new generation of independent teenagers? Well, as an easy method to get into Gloucester, the train service is a complete failure. For a start, the station is a mile outside my town, meaning a long walk. Secondly, the odds of the one train every hour being on time and not cancelled are minimal. The one time the train cannot seem to arrive is the one time its due. Furthermore, the state of the majority of the trains in my experience is shabby at best. Torn and stained fabric covers the uncomfortable metal chairs, and doesn't draw appeal to the service that already costs more than a bus. Are the Buses Better? Buses are often in a similar state of ill-keep, although at least these run frequently and on time. The bus service in Gloucestershire is the staple public transport for teenagers. This is because they are cheap and easy to use. Yet buses do take roundabout routes to the city centre, and this increases the journey time dramatically. For example, the number 91 bus to Dursley would take about 40 minutes on a Saturday, but this is increased by at least ten minutes by going around the suburbs. This is a 25% increase in every journey time.  Torn and stained fabric covers the uncomfortable metal chairs...
 | | Ed Leighton |
Perhaps the answer to this would be to have an additional bus service for the suburbs. This would increase the amount of buses from there to the city, and also reduce the journey time from town such as Dursley. This may well encourage commuters to use buses on a daily basis, because few people do this at the moment. Inter-Council Cooperation Also, there is a failing in the transport links to other cities such as Bristol. Because Bristol is in a different transport juristiction (South Gloucestershire) it is not covered by the Gloucestershire bus companies. To travel from Dursley to Bristol, you have to go to Thornbury and then out again. With a little more coordination between the different transport departments, and an extra stop on the bus routes at Dursley, this situation could be rectified. Teenagers today want to go shopping, or to watch films. This is made possible by the public transports. Furthermore, with the government pushing public transport as a solution to congestion and to the environmental issues it causes, it is in their interests that it runs as efficiently as possible. This article contains user-generated content (ie external contribution) expressing a personal opinion, not the views of BBC Gloucestershire. Article by Ed Leighton 
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Young people rely a lot on public transport. But how effective are the services on offer? Fifteen-year-old Ed Leighton thinks they could be improved.
