UNLESS we all decide to never leave our homes again — or take up only going to places within walking distance — we all need transport to get around.

Now, I'm quite a sociable person and like to get out and about to see folk, have a natter and a bit of a laugh.

Not only that, I have a mortgage, bills and have to eat and therefore need to be able to get to a place of work, to, well, work.

I admit I sometimes take the fact I'm lucky enough to own a car for granted. Well, at the moment I do. If petrol goes up any more I may have to sell a kidney to pay to fill up my tank.

But when my motor was in the garage for repairs recently I had to use the ever-dreaded public transport.

I was actually quite looking forward to it.

Some time to sit and read a book without having to deal with idiot drivers, road rage (both mine and other road users) and not getting frustrated sitting in traffic while wasting aforementioned ludicrously priced petrol.

Not only that, we're all being told how we can save money — not to mention the planet — by leaving the car at home and using public transport, so I thought it would be a win win situation.

So the night before I embarked on my bus adventure, I checked the timetable and planned my route to work.

I got to the bus stop 10 minutes early — anyone who knows me will realise my being early for anything is a small miracle — and waited for the bus.

And waited. And waited. And then waited some more.

When it eventually did rock up it became apparent that the old saying “you wait ages for one bus and then two come along at once” is not only true but woefully underestimated as not two but four appeared.

The journey was crowded, slow and I was almost half an hour late for work — despite setting off almost 45 minutes earlier than usual.

Yes, I know rush hour traffic will affect buses as well as cars, surely there should be some allowance for this in the timetable?

And it isn't only road-based modes of public transport that drive people potty.

I have pals who commute on rail and on a daily basis I hear tales of late trains, ridiculously overcrowded trains, trains that can't stop at appointed stations because they're simply too full. The list goes on and on.

And don't get me started on the Metrolink, which apparently can't cope with ice.

This could be a problem during the winter months, you know, when there's ice on the track for weeks and weeks at a time.

My bus-related escapade has taught me two things.

One, I now realise just how lucky I am to have a car and not have to rely on public transport to get everywhere.

And two, that if the powers that be really want more of us to ditch our motors and use public transport then it's going to have to get better. A lot better.