Do you use them in the rush hour to jump the queue?

Why should taxi's be able to use them?

No idea why Taxi's are allowed to use them. Obviously they know the right people!

If you look they are frequently empty or with only one passenger so how this is better than single person in a car? And if it is because they are being paid then why can't all business vehicles use the bus lanes?

In fact the only purpose of bus lanes is to reduce road capacity for car users. That is why they are now frequently 24Hr bus lanes on roads where there was no congestion on Sundays etc but now is with all trafic squezzed in to the one lane.

What really winds me up is the number of Dual carriage way Red routes in London which are now single lanes because of bus lanes. One day these where critical trunk roads which if you stopped on at any time they would ticket you and the next day there not as they think there ok if they are reduced to single lane by installing a bus lane! subsidised by road tax.

What annoys me is if the queue is to go straight on or right and you want to go left. So in fact your queueing for no reason hence why I often go sod it and use the lane - which it must be noted I have to cross in order to get to my destination.

Simon.

adrian, i agree with bus lanes. eco friendly buses full of commuters should be encouraged and shouldn't be slowed down by selfish b*stards like us driving in cars alone. the better the buses the more people will opt to take them and the clearer the car lane will be.

p1, i have to disagree with you i'm affraid. whether you agree with the rules or not, think about the other people who are also turning left and don't jump the queue. there's nothing more irritating than someone who thinks they have the right to ignore the rules. i admire your honesty though.

Kippax

Sorry, Have to disagree with you there. eco-friendly busses are a rarity. Check the Assosiacion of British Drivers web site for the facts and figures. (Loads of other very good reading there too regarding road safety, transport policy etc)

http://www.abd.org.uk

I'd rather breath the air in a busy tesco car park than the air in the average bus depot.

Also, I recently noticed the "dedicated" bus lanes leading into Bradford town centre (on Manchester Road for anyone who's passing). The pavement at the side of the bus lane is covered in soot/carbon and god knows what else. The kerb on the car lane next to it is spotless despite always being busy with cars queued at the lights while the bus lane sits empty.

marty, i never said buses are eco friendly, just that they should be. your average bus has a filthy engine and a lot of the time they are nearly empty anyway.

i'm saying multi passenger transport free's the road up for all of us and to encourage people to use them they need the privilege of a bus lane.

kippax.. apologies. Misunderstood what you were getting at.

I don't have anything against the bus (used them often enough before i could drive). Just don't agree with the current government policy of trying to get us all to use them in at the moment.

Granted, if they we're made more eco-friendly, cheaper (my scoob costs me less in fuel than using the bus), and cleaner then they'd be great. I just don't see how they can justify an entire lane of a carriageway for buses when you almost never see them being used (except by taxi drivers and impatient motorists).

Bus lanes, waste of time IMHO. In this day and age of PC and all that rubbish why should anyone get an advantage over anyone else?

The reason they have them, like others have stated already, is to reduce road capacity for cars.