One of my favourite things to tell my friends when I go back home is that I have free bus travel. Whenever the buses are running through the day, I pull out my Young Scot card and hop on the bus to wherever I want to go above the border. I could get a discounted £2 entry into historical sites in the Scotland. But since turning 22 this is now only a distant memory.
When the Scottish government made it so that under 22s would be given free bus travel, this had me overjoyed in 2021. I was able to go to see concerts in Glasgow for free, only at the cost of the last journey back. My silly grocery shops at Cameron Toll were possible because I had the bus to haul my groceries and me back to my student accommodation, so I’d only need to muster the energy to carry all my random bits and bots for 200 metres.
Now I must suffice for hell on earth (Nicholson Street Lidl) and buy bus tickets. In the grand scheme of things, it is a minor inconvenience but for a born and bred city girl like me, losing my free bus travel was a stab to the heart. I had garnered a love-hate relationship with the 30 and adored the 14 (only when it came). The 2 was the weird bus that sometimes got the luxury of a double decker and the 33 reminded me of London buses with the back exit.
The core issue is that I got used to free bus travel for much of my time at university and then it’s wretched away from me the year that I would be the most stressed out – fourth year. While the logistics and funding for it would be horrendous, I think free bus travel for students would be wonderful. Hell, free bus travel for anyone. No, it’s not realistic but in a world that’s going down in literal flames I can afford to be a little optimistic.
My wishful thinking does not translate into real life, so I stay spiteful and bitter to those who still can use their Young Scot cards for free bus travel. Waving around a precious card that gives you shelter from the icy winds in winter, I watch helplessly as I pull out my phone to pay with Apple Pay.
Photo by Illiya Vjestica on Unsplash
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Short Rant: Losing the Young Scot Privilege
One of my favourite things to tell my friends when I go back home is that I have free bus travel. Whenever the buses are running through the day, I pull out my Young Scot card and hop on the bus to wherever I want to go above the border. I could get a discounted £2 entry into historical sites in the Scotland. But since turning 22 this is now only a distant memory.
When the Scottish government made it so that under 22s would be given free bus travel, this had me overjoyed in 2021. I was able to go to see concerts in Glasgow for free, only at the cost of the last journey back. My silly grocery shops at Cameron Toll were possible because I had the bus to haul my groceries and me back to my student accommodation, so I’d only need to muster the energy to carry all my random bits and bots for 200 metres.
Now I must suffice for hell on earth (Nicholson Street Lidl) and buy bus tickets. In the grand scheme of things, it is a minor inconvenience but for a born and bred city girl like me, losing my free bus travel was a stab to the heart. I had garnered a love-hate relationship with the 30 and adored the 14 (only when it came). The 2 was the weird bus that sometimes got the luxury of a double decker and the 33 reminded me of London buses with the back exit.
The core issue is that I got used to free bus travel for much of my time at university and then it’s wretched away from me the year that I would be the most stressed out – fourth year. While the logistics and funding for it would be horrendous, I think free bus travel for students would be wonderful. Hell, free bus travel for anyone. No, it’s not realistic but in a world that’s going down in literal flames I can afford to be a little optimistic.
My wishful thinking does not translate into real life, so I stay spiteful and bitter to those who still can use their Young Scot cards for free bus travel. Waving around a precious card that gives you shelter from the icy winds in winter, I watch helplessly as I pull out my phone to pay with Apple Pay.
Photo by Illiya Vjestica on Unsplash
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