The Basics Of Using Public Transportation

TTT 56 - Transportation
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Jenn: Hi everyone, and welcome back to Travel Tip Tuesday with the Travel Mug Podcast. I am Jenn and joined here with my partner in podcasting, Meggan. So this week, Meggan, I wanna talk about some basic tips for using public transportation. So, Yes. If you don't use public transportation regularly if you live somewhere maybe where you don't have public transportation or if you just don't use it in your city and then you travel somewhere where you're gonna be using a subway or a bus, it can seem like really overwhelming and confusing.

So we use public transportation quite often when we travel, especially to bigger cities, to avoid renting a car or using Uber, it's usually the most economical option. And some cities definitely have better systems than others. We've, uh. experienced quite a few. So these are just some basic tips. They're not really specific to a certain city, but it'll help you get started on your public transportation journey.

So

Meggan: literally.

Jenn: literally your journey so using, use Google Maps. I really, we, we love Google here. not sponsored, but we love.

Meggan: No. I mean, we would be, but we're not. It's we're big fans. Yeah.

Jenn: So you can plan route with Google Maps. If you just toggle over to the public transportation icon and put in where you're starting and where you're ending, it will help you. It is helpful.

Otherwise you can also find out if the city you are visiting has an app for their public transportation. Many of them do. We used it for Boston to help plan our journeys on their subway system, so it'll help you plan the route and it usually will help you buy tickets. Some of them you can buy the tickets right in the app.

Some of them you can't. So. You'll have to check it out. Speaking of buying tickets, , this isa complicated Discussion, but it can be helpful to know how often you'll be using the public transportation when you're visiting a city so that you can figure out what types of tickets to buy. So many cities will offer like a one ride ticket. A pay per ride ticket and an unlimited ride card for a certain duration, like seven days. So it totally depends on how often you will ride. You'll have to do some math. I know gross, but it tickets are usually one way. So you do have to keep that in mind. But you can change trains or buses as long as you don't leave the station usually, and it just counts as one. But again, you'll have to check with the specific place that you're visiting. But yes, buying the tickets is the complicated part.

Meggan: Always.

Jenn: Yeah, so sometimes you'll have to, you can use an app to pay, sometimes you have to use cash on buses. Halifax finally, I think, just got a tap option, like you had to pay with actual coin, like exact change

Meggan: or buy paper

Jenn: Yeah, it was it Wild, wild

Meggan: scandalized by the whole thing.

Jenn: I couldn't believe it anyway. Most big cities that will not be a problem. Halifax is just slow on the uptake apparently. But you know, we paid cash in Scotland to take a city bus and so it is possible, but just know how, what the different options are, and what they may need. 'cause I think a lot of places probably won't take cash.

Meggan: right.

Jenn: myxt tietep is know the stop where you wanna get off, which obviously, but subways and trains often stop at every stop listed unless it's an express train, which we've been on in New York and missed where we want to get off 'cause it wasn't stopping there. But many times buses are a request stop situation, so you'll have to like press a button or pull a cord or whatever to request to get off.

And so you just kind of have to know what the situation is and where you want to get off in order to do it. And so my last tip is know the direction you wanna go in so many subways list the last stop as the direction. So for example, when we were in Boston, we wanted to take the blue line. We wanted eastbound towards Wonderland when we were taking the airport or from the city to the airport.

So look at the map, see what the last stop is listed as. And that's usually what will be on the train. Because if you just told me to take the blue line, eastbound east means nothing to me. I don't know

Meggan: No, never give me directions in, in like actual direction.

Jenn: Yeah, so the other thing is you need to make sure that you're on the right platform or side of the street if it's a bus. So one side will be going uptown, one side will be going downtown. You just have to know where you have to be and usually there are people that are working there that are around you can ask questions.

There's usually some sort of like help desk or person to talk to if it's a bigger station. So. It's, it's overwhelming, but it's figureoutabl So Meggann, do you use public transportation when you travel or do you find it completely overwhelming?

Meggan: No, definitely we take trains and I don't necessarily find subways overwhelming. So those two, yes. What I oddly find overwhelming is like city buses because. It's a lot of pressure to know which one to get and where to get off, and for some reason that that stresses me out. So we rarely use city buses and it's not that I would be like, no, I'm not gonna get on that bus.

But it's not usually an option. We think of, honestly, I would cab it before I would do a city bus just because of that. So subways and trains, no problem. So I would say a a bit, but usually when we're far away, we have a car rented anyway. It's pretty rare that we don't have a car. But that's what I would say.

But I think these are some really great tips because those are literally the basics you need in any situation.

Jenn: Yeah, for sure. Yeah. Perfect. Well, that is all we have this week for this travel Tip Tuesday. I hope you found it a little bit helpful. You can find us. . On our website, travel mug podcast.com. We're on social media at Travel Mug Podcast. We're also on YouTube where you can see our pretty faces. You can support the show through buy Me a Coffee by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, or by sharing the show with a travel loving pal.

And we will chat with you again soon. Bye everyone.

Meggan: Bye