Rachel starts a Level 1 BSL Course with Deafworks in a few weeks, and today she made me take her to Old Street on the 43 bus so that she can see for herself where she needs to go, as I won’t be able to take her.

This got me thinking – why do some people take to London Transport like water, and some people need to be taught? I certainly don’t remember anyone ever having to teach me how to get around London on public transport. I remember when I moved to London in June 2003, I was far more reliant on the Tube to get around, and was more than willing to change as necessary.

Now, I find I prefer the bus so much more; you get to see so much more of London (one of my favourite routes is the 43 bus between Monument and London Bridge because you get to go over London Bridge itself and see the Tower Bridge on your right. Given that I’m a historian, this is rather understandable.

People like Rachel though, they just find themselves so intimidated by the whole London Transport network. Nothing could be easier in my opinion. The Tube is really easy to work out; and you can work out how to get to places via bus even without having to check the Transport for London’s Journey Planner just by looking at the front of buses or on bus stands. I think people just need to take the plunge and be let loose!