No one is impressed!

[Blue Ginger]

Smart cars only exist for entertainment purposes.

Imagine standing at the Arc de Triumph in Paris with its 12 roads leading on and off. In 20 minutes, saw at least 3 accidents including a smart car versus smart car one. The tow truck got both on the back of the flatbed while the drivers were still swapping details. Just wish I had a video of it. In Paris, it's the only car that can easily get a parking space on the street, mainly because it fits with the rear to the curb instead of sideways.

I wouldn't bother with one living in Oz. Just the thought of driving one with all the oversized double-trailer trucks gives me the heebee jeebees. Like I said, I grew up getting driven around in a '76 Kingswood. That thing was solid. Get into a minor accident and all you needed was a rubber mallet and a block of wood and no more dints. Major accidents just resulted in a quick trip to a panel beaters were the did the same thing with better tools. It was built like a tank. Probably would still have it too, except it didn't have power steering.

[greek_jester]

I never understood the appeal of those things. They don't get all that great mileage for their size and you can't carry anything bigger than a duffel bag.

Have you ever tried to drive or, God help you, park in some of Europe's older cities? Most of them have street plans that were built over the animal tracks originally laid down in medieval times - or older. We tend to keep our geography; several major A roads in Britain are laid down over Roman roads.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_..._Britain#ref_A

In cities like that parking is often at a premium as the roads (even those built as recently as in Victorian era) are too narrow to contain an average 2 cars per household. As such tiny cars which are short enough to park perpendicular to the kerb without causing an obstruction to oncoming traffic are very, very useful.

Why not take public transport, you say? Public transport is often 1) overcrowded, 2) late or cancelled, and 3) can take 3 times as long as a car to get to your destination (as an example, I have to leave my house at 7am to get to where I work by 8:30. If I drive, I can leave my house at 8am).

Why not walk or bike, you say? This is Britain. It rains. A lot. Often with very little warning, even if you're plugged into BBC Weather 24/7.

[Jay 2K Winger]

Why not take public transport, you say? Public transport is often 1) overcrowded, 2) late or cancelled, and 3) can take 3 times as long as a car to get to your destination (as an example, I have to leave my house at 7am to get to where I work by 8:30. If I drive, I can leave my house at 8am).

I remember a reddit topic that was "what few words could piss off most British people?" and the number-one answer was "Replacement bus service."

This is Britain. It rains. A lot.

Heh. I remember a joke about British weather. It went "I love the British summer. It's my favorite day of the year."

[Seanette]

Why not take public transport, you say? Public transport is often 1) overcrowded, 2) late or cancelled, and 3) can take 3 times as long as a car to get to your destination (as an example, I have to leave my house at 7am to get to where I work by 8:30. If I drive, I can leave my house at 8am).

Public transit over here on this side of the pond (at least in the city I live in) tends toward similar issues. OK, overcrowding is rare, but that 3x travel time sounds right, and the "schedule", especially for buses, really should be filed in Fiction, specifically Fantasy. Throw in cleanliness problems and the other passengers, with the outright insane, the drunk/high, and the selfish (screaming profanity-laden TMI into their phones, blaring their choice of "music" throughout the train car via cruddy cell-phone speaker.....), and about the only reason I take transit at this point (if DH just doesn't flat-out NEED to have the car) is that I have a student pass good through December, so my trip is basically free, vs. paying for gas and driving a car that does not currently have working AC in summer.

[greek_jester]

I remember a reddit topic that was "what few words could piss off most British people?" and the number-one answer was "Replacement bus service."

You're not joking. I just read that phrase and flinched.

[Marmalady]

Coo-ee, GJ - I'm in Norfolk too, and I suspect not very far from you.

Living out in the villages, as I do, any 'bus service' tends to be the stuff of legend and myth. Around here, buses are like unicorns - we'd love to believe they exist but it's hard to find proof.

[greek_jester]

Living out in the villages, as I do, any 'bus service' tends to be the stuff of legend and myth. Around here, buses are like unicorns - we'd love to believe they exist but it's hard to find proof.

Too darn right. I had a read through some bus timetables for the area once, and I could not believe how little of rural Norfolk was covered. If you laid them out on a map there'd be huge tracts labelled "here be dragons!" And don't get me started on trying to get anywhere that's not Norwich on the bus...

[Deevil]

Public transit over here on this side of the pond (at least in the city I live in) tends toward similar issues. OK, overcrowding is rare, but that 3x travel time sounds right, and the "schedule", especially for buses, really should be filed in Fiction, specifically Fantasy.

I live in the largest city in my state and just checked the bus schedule for me to get from my house to work (10-15 minute drive). If I was to take the bus to work, I would have to leave my house two and a half hours before my shift, walk a half hour to a bus stop, ride the bus for a half hour, and walk for another half hour to my job (arriving an hour before my shift starts). And they wonder why the buses are near empty all the time.

[wolfie]

Around here, buses are like unicorns - we'd love to believe they exist but it's hard to find proof.

Does this also mean that only a virgin can catch a bus in your neck of the woods?

[catcul]

Does this also mean that only a virgin can catch a bus in your neck of the woods?

It's too bad you have disqualified every single member of Customers Suck.

[Monterey Jack]

It's too bad you have disqualified every single member of Customers Suck.

Not every member...

[Food Lady]

I was gonna say.... I have read people's posts on the subject.

[Kristev]

No, not all members are disqualified . . .

[protege]

Have you ever tried to drive or, God help you, park in some of Europe's older cities? Most of them have street plans that were built over the animal tracks originally laid down in medieval times - or older. We tend to keep our geography; several major A roads in Britain are laid down over Roman roads.

Nope, and I don't plan to. I can understand why they'd sell well in Europe. However, over here, they're a joke. Even with some of the extremely-tight parts of Pittsburgh, most residents refuse to get them. Much of the city was originally laid out in the 1700s, with houses and narrow streets perched on the steep hillsides. Except for the downtown area and some of the industrial portions--both of which were burnt to the ground by striking railroad and steel workers--very little was ever modernized. Lots of narrow, one-way streets all over the place. Very few Smart cars around here though--they lack the power to climb the steep hills. Well that, and nobody wants to get smoked by a city bus at a traffic light

[blondescales]

Smart cars look silly to begin with, but adding eyelashes to the headlights is really silly (I actually saw one like this). Very hard to drive and laugh that hard at the same time.