Week 168

The big bustimes.org news is … trains.

If you think such a development is as easy as clicking my heels (or a mouse) and making it so, I’ve got news for you … actually it sort of was. The railway timetable data just appeared without warning in the London region of the Traveline data (L.zip), amid the existing buses, tubes, etc. I did have to do a bit of work to match the ATCO codes in the timetable data to the ones in NaPTAN

and the same for the operator codes

minor discrepancies which I guess they’ll fix properly in time. But that was all.

Of course it all might disappear just as suddenly as it appeared. I could go further, add some real-time information and stuff, but that would take actual effort, and there are already a dozen great websites and apps (like Realtime Trains) which only a fool would try to compete with.

The main ramification is you can log more non-bus journeys to Busmiles, in addition to trams and ferries, if that’s the kind of pointless fun you find fun. RailMiles is still better if you want to account for the way the tracks are curved and trains don’t go straight between stations like flying crows.

Predictably, some emails asking me if buses were running as usual on the bank holiday. To which an answer is “I don’t know, they’re probably on a Sunday (or maybe Saturday) timetable … I could Google it for you, but so could you.” But I’m not complaining, it’s always nice to hear from people.

Proud of the lack of flags or bunting festooned anywhere around the building here. My people!

I’ve not followed the jubilation coverage (let’s say I’m saving it to watch later, so no spoilers please), but on Twitter I saw a picture of a bus (one with a local connection no less) decorated with a bizarre sort of cod–Cold War Steve collage of celebrities, one of whom was Billy Connolly but I initially thought was David Davis, what a thing to think. And it’s funny that there’s a Five Guys outside St Paul’s Cathedral.

Had to drive a motor car, which I can but usually don’t do. Good poets don’t drive cars, but how is that relevant? I’m not a poet. Anyway, big up the Enterprise Car Club, whose app I have some complaints about but otherwise worked well. A few humiliating moments, before I remembered how a clutch works and thought to push the seat back to make enough room for my legs. No-one beeped their horn at me, no trauma, and oh I was patient and generous when overtaking bicyclists. Now the next time I have to drive a car, whenever it comes, will be less daunting.

🎦 Diamonds Are Forever. Turns out the Odeons are showing the Bond films just slightly out of sync with the Vues, which is handy, big up capitalism.

Alas, it’s beginning to seem like I might never get to see Morbius on a big screen, so much for the summer thereof.