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Wednesday, December 1, 2010

Why is it...

2:37 PM / General / 1 Comment

...that a measly bit of snow is capable of bringing this country to a standstill? I was meant to be going on relief to a smaller library that's a little less straightforward to get to than my normal branch (a train and a bus ride as opposed to a direct train or bus), but after nearly an hour and a half standing at the railway station I was informed that all trains in either direction had been suspended indefinitely. Some buses were still running, but getting to the branch I was supposed to be working at would have required three buses plus a twenty minute walk. By the time I got there - IF I got there, which wasn't exactly a sure bet given the disruptions to the service - it would practically be time to leave again, and then I'd have been faced with the dubious task of somehow getting home.

I had no option but to call my boss, explain that there was no way I was going to get in, and head for home. I'm fortunate in that I have a thoroughly decent boss who is understanding of such problems, but it doesn't change the fact that what should have been a simple A-to-B journey was made impossible by a few centimetres of snow. Glasgow isn't even that badly hit compared to some parts of the country. So my question is, if countries like Sweden can cope with weather much more severe than this every winter, what's the UK's excuse? Admittedly it's unusual for us to get snow of any degree of severity this early into winter (normally it tends to be January for us), but it's not as if snow is an unknown quantity in these parts, and we were repeatedly promised by the government that they had learned their lesson from the severe weather last winter and had made appropriate provisions.

Obviously telling any authority they should be spending MORE money in the current political climate isn't going to go down too well, but if winters like this are to become the norm (thanks, climate change), I'd say it's time the people in charge get their act together and take steps to ensure the whole country isn't going to grind to a standstill every winter.

1 Comment

 
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