Bus-stop news!

After last week's moan about the closure of Colchester's bus station, I thought I'd post a little update. For latecomers, the main bus station closed down last Saturday and the main pick up point for my particular bus is now on the street where two major thoroughfares running through Colchester, including the High Street, meet.

There is a roundabout at the top of the road, perhaps 15 yards from the stop. If you look at the picture above you can see the road curves around and on the curve is the bus stop, long enough for two buses. Although not, as you'll also see from the photo, if there's a car parked in the way. Even without the car, the third bus – the single-decker following on from the double-decker just about to park would still not be able to fit and would have to wait in the road, blocking the path of cars filtering off the roundabout.

The stop itself is to be home to 15 different buses and has a sideless shelter that will seat only a handful of people...

The colourful background is something to do with something – I'm actually not sure but there's some significance to the giant giraffe that is painted on the side of the wall seen looking down the road...

The high-sided buildings channels the wind so that it whistles down the road. These hood-style stops don't protect you from the rain and it will only get worse when it starts to snow. It doesn't seem much for £2 million, which is what the changes have cost... you might even think that the people who plan these refits don't actually use public transport themselves.