Sydney"s Public Transport Vs Private Transport
A few months ago my friends and I went out for dinner using public transport and it was a disaster so I want to share the experience we had.
I had a group of 15 friends and we wanted to be at a restaurant in Darling Harbour by 7pm so we left our location at Riverview which is about 20 minutes drive on a good day at about 13kms from our destination.
We left at 5pm to be on the safe side and had to walk to the nearest bus stop (about 10 minutes walk away) and wait 20 minutes for a bus that should have arrived 15 minutes earlier, so far so good? The bus took us to the interchange at Lane Cove where we had to get off after 20 minutes driving and wait another 15 minutes for the bus to take us to the city.
The bus was full and drove right past us.
Time: 6:05pm We had the choice of catching another bus all stops to North Sydney and catching a train or taxi or even walking but it was cold and clouds threatened rain so we waited for the next one.
The bus timetable said the next express bus was due in 25 minutes and the next all stops bus was due in 12 minutes.
At this time we decided to experiment and half the group would take the early all stops bus and the other half would wait for the express and we'd meet up at Wynyard in Sydney's CBD.
As usual the all stops bus was 10 minutes late and arrived 6:27pm there was about 8 other people wanting to get on and 8 from our group so it took about 5 minutes for everyone to pay and get on.
We have transfer tickets but it still took ages and our group squeezed on and had to stand on the bus pack in like sardines in a fogged up bus that was noisy, smelly and very uncomfortable.
At every bus stop someone had to get off and others get on so with most of the people sitting down wanting to get off was like being herded like sheep while the "Bus Stop Shuffle" manoeuvres had to take place in order for people to get off, standing passengers fill the newly vacant seat and the rest of the standing fill the gaps while new passengers get on and the cycle continues.
It took 55 minutes for the bus to get to the city from Lane Cove interchange all stops, all bad.
Time arrival at Wynyard - 7:22pm; we are already 22 minutes late for our reservation and we still are 3kms away from our destination.
The other half of the group arrived and had a similar story of the "Bus Stop Shuffle" but between that and 50% of patrons on the bus with blaring MP3 players, backpacks on peoples backs that take up nearly double the space and cause discomfort as they turn and a driver that was fresh off his learners license we all met up and had to decide our next transport need.
We were at Wynyard and we have 3 choices to get to Harbourside at Darling Harbour; 1.
Walk - this would take about 30 minutes and with rain looming was a risky option 2.
Taxi - we would need 4 taxis and competing with everyone else was not an option 3.
Walk or catch a train to the Monorail Station and get it to Darling Harbour We decided to walk and it took 25 minutes and we arrived sweaty, frustrated and not in a good mood.
By the time we were seated it was 8pm.
By the time we were eating it was 8:45pm.
Nearly 3 hours it took using Sydney's public transport infrastructure.
Lucky the restaurant was fantastic and a good time was had by all until one member of the group asked the question..
..
..
What are we going to do to get home? Everyone looked at each other with long faces and we decided to stay in the Darling Harbour after the meal and each make our own way to our own homes.
It was because of the public transport system that we didn't stick to our original plan and it was an absolute disaster catching the public transport system that we all vowed never to do again.
One of the people in the group suggested we should have used a private transport company but I had no idea what to look for online.
One member of the group said they would type in to Google the search term bus charter Sydney, one member said bus hire Sydney and another suggested that since we were a small group we should search minibus charter Sydney as chartering a bus we would know comes with a professional driver and not from some rental company that would get their mates to do the driving.
So, a minibus charter company or charter bus company with mini buses.
When I got home late that night I went on to the major search engines and had a look and found some companies and looked at their services, most offered a chartered minibus but there were a few rental companies as well that didn't appeal to me even though they offered drivers.
The biggest drawback with the rental companies offering drivers is that the vehicles have been abused by rentals over the years and rarely do they repair them so you'd end up with some beaten up vehicle that's been to hell & back.
So charter bus companies it is.
A few months later we planned another outing with the group from Riverview to a restaurant in Darling Harbour but this time we chartered a mini bus.
The vehicle arrived 10 minutes prior to our time and we could see the driver checking the vehicles tyres and general inspection which gave us a good feeling knowing he was being professional.
The mini bus was clean and well-presented and it only took 20 minutes to get to the city in the bus lane.
We all looked at each other and smiled with approval and the ease and comfort we had for our evening.
We were dropped as close as possible to our destination and we complimented the driver and in a great frame of mind we all had a wonderful time.
The driver was waiting where he had dropped us off with the air-conditioner on and we rode the mini bus back to our location in 20 minutes.
Successful night! We saved a potential 5 hours of hassle using public transport with discomfort and noise and we rode in a deluxe minibus with a good driver.
Yes, we paid a little extra for the service than using public transport but once the cost was spit up between the group it really wasn't all that bad and we didn't have all the issues we did using public transport and the time save was enormous and well worth paying extra for.
Private transport is a must for any group and chartering a bus, coach or mini-bus is highly recommended to avoid problems.
We will never use public transport again; private transport charter bus companies in Sydney are 100% the way to go.
Who did we use? I hear you ask..
..
..
We went with a reliable, punctual & friendly & clean charter bus company in Sydney called Sydney Charter Bus Australia.
Why? Because they gave us the most relevant information without pressure of making a booking, they had a great website without any misleading information and the price was competitive which included all taxes and tolls.
Compared to other companies that gave us a price then said plus GST, plus tolls, plus a bond, plus this and that..
...
way too much overload of plus.
We filled out their online booking form and read their terms & conditions.
There were quite a lot but it was essential that we knew exactly what we were getting and not finding out after the job that there we extra expenses.
Everything was absolutely fine.
It's good to know in advance what we expect from them and know our limitations for our own safety and comfort of others.
This is being honest, upfront and to the point.
You gotta respect that! Sydney Charter Bus lived up to its claim of reliable, punctual, friendly & clean motto and we'll be using them again for sure and being highly recommended to our work colleagues and friends.
Visit Sydney Charter Bus for all you charter bus requirements in Sydney, Australia.
I had a group of 15 friends and we wanted to be at a restaurant in Darling Harbour by 7pm so we left our location at Riverview which is about 20 minutes drive on a good day at about 13kms from our destination.
We left at 5pm to be on the safe side and had to walk to the nearest bus stop (about 10 minutes walk away) and wait 20 minutes for a bus that should have arrived 15 minutes earlier, so far so good? The bus took us to the interchange at Lane Cove where we had to get off after 20 minutes driving and wait another 15 minutes for the bus to take us to the city.
The bus was full and drove right past us.
Time: 6:05pm We had the choice of catching another bus all stops to North Sydney and catching a train or taxi or even walking but it was cold and clouds threatened rain so we waited for the next one.
The bus timetable said the next express bus was due in 25 minutes and the next all stops bus was due in 12 minutes.
At this time we decided to experiment and half the group would take the early all stops bus and the other half would wait for the express and we'd meet up at Wynyard in Sydney's CBD.
As usual the all stops bus was 10 minutes late and arrived 6:27pm there was about 8 other people wanting to get on and 8 from our group so it took about 5 minutes for everyone to pay and get on.
We have transfer tickets but it still took ages and our group squeezed on and had to stand on the bus pack in like sardines in a fogged up bus that was noisy, smelly and very uncomfortable.
At every bus stop someone had to get off and others get on so with most of the people sitting down wanting to get off was like being herded like sheep while the "Bus Stop Shuffle" manoeuvres had to take place in order for people to get off, standing passengers fill the newly vacant seat and the rest of the standing fill the gaps while new passengers get on and the cycle continues.
It took 55 minutes for the bus to get to the city from Lane Cove interchange all stops, all bad.
Time arrival at Wynyard - 7:22pm; we are already 22 minutes late for our reservation and we still are 3kms away from our destination.
The other half of the group arrived and had a similar story of the "Bus Stop Shuffle" but between that and 50% of patrons on the bus with blaring MP3 players, backpacks on peoples backs that take up nearly double the space and cause discomfort as they turn and a driver that was fresh off his learners license we all met up and had to decide our next transport need.
We were at Wynyard and we have 3 choices to get to Harbourside at Darling Harbour; 1.
Walk - this would take about 30 minutes and with rain looming was a risky option 2.
Taxi - we would need 4 taxis and competing with everyone else was not an option 3.
Walk or catch a train to the Monorail Station and get it to Darling Harbour We decided to walk and it took 25 minutes and we arrived sweaty, frustrated and not in a good mood.
By the time we were seated it was 8pm.
By the time we were eating it was 8:45pm.
Nearly 3 hours it took using Sydney's public transport infrastructure.
Lucky the restaurant was fantastic and a good time was had by all until one member of the group asked the question..
..
..
What are we going to do to get home? Everyone looked at each other with long faces and we decided to stay in the Darling Harbour after the meal and each make our own way to our own homes.
It was because of the public transport system that we didn't stick to our original plan and it was an absolute disaster catching the public transport system that we all vowed never to do again.
One of the people in the group suggested we should have used a private transport company but I had no idea what to look for online.
One member of the group said they would type in to Google the search term bus charter Sydney, one member said bus hire Sydney and another suggested that since we were a small group we should search minibus charter Sydney as chartering a bus we would know comes with a professional driver and not from some rental company that would get their mates to do the driving.
So, a minibus charter company or charter bus company with mini buses.
When I got home late that night I went on to the major search engines and had a look and found some companies and looked at their services, most offered a chartered minibus but there were a few rental companies as well that didn't appeal to me even though they offered drivers.
The biggest drawback with the rental companies offering drivers is that the vehicles have been abused by rentals over the years and rarely do they repair them so you'd end up with some beaten up vehicle that's been to hell & back.
So charter bus companies it is.
A few months later we planned another outing with the group from Riverview to a restaurant in Darling Harbour but this time we chartered a mini bus.
The vehicle arrived 10 minutes prior to our time and we could see the driver checking the vehicles tyres and general inspection which gave us a good feeling knowing he was being professional.
The mini bus was clean and well-presented and it only took 20 minutes to get to the city in the bus lane.
We all looked at each other and smiled with approval and the ease and comfort we had for our evening.
We were dropped as close as possible to our destination and we complimented the driver and in a great frame of mind we all had a wonderful time.
The driver was waiting where he had dropped us off with the air-conditioner on and we rode the mini bus back to our location in 20 minutes.
Successful night! We saved a potential 5 hours of hassle using public transport with discomfort and noise and we rode in a deluxe minibus with a good driver.
Yes, we paid a little extra for the service than using public transport but once the cost was spit up between the group it really wasn't all that bad and we didn't have all the issues we did using public transport and the time save was enormous and well worth paying extra for.
Private transport is a must for any group and chartering a bus, coach or mini-bus is highly recommended to avoid problems.
We will never use public transport again; private transport charter bus companies in Sydney are 100% the way to go.
Who did we use? I hear you ask..
..
..
We went with a reliable, punctual & friendly & clean charter bus company in Sydney called Sydney Charter Bus Australia.
Why? Because they gave us the most relevant information without pressure of making a booking, they had a great website without any misleading information and the price was competitive which included all taxes and tolls.
Compared to other companies that gave us a price then said plus GST, plus tolls, plus a bond, plus this and that..
...
way too much overload of plus.
We filled out their online booking form and read their terms & conditions.
There were quite a lot but it was essential that we knew exactly what we were getting and not finding out after the job that there we extra expenses.
Everything was absolutely fine.
It's good to know in advance what we expect from them and know our limitations for our own safety and comfort of others.
This is being honest, upfront and to the point.
You gotta respect that! Sydney Charter Bus lived up to its claim of reliable, punctual, friendly & clean motto and we'll be using them again for sure and being highly recommended to our work colleagues and friends.
Visit Sydney Charter Bus for all you charter bus requirements in Sydney, Australia.
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