Attacking ATAC.

For those of you who are unaware, ATAC is basically the Roman equivalent of TFL (Transport for London), they are responsible for all of the public transport here in Rome. A system which, when working well, is rather good- considering that as a student I can buy a monthly pass for only €18. However, it never works flawlessly! For one thing, the buses don't come anywhere near regularly enough for a capital city and more often than not I, in my impatience, end up taking the imaginary bus instead of waiting! Just so you know, most Italians do not view this waiting as a problem, they'll happily just stand there for half an hour in order to take the bus for only 2 stops. It's madness! I realise this is probably how they feel about me walking almost everywhere.

Another common feature of the ATAC system, and all transport in Italy (as I gather from the grumblings of my fellow Warwick students) is lo sciopero. Translation: the strike. About once a month it seems the good unionised workers of ATAC decide 'nope, not today' and the whole city stands still, just like the empty trains and buses. As grand scale standstills go, it's not nearly as much fun as a city-wide game of musical statues would be, but there you go, such is life. No one ever listens to my brilliant, albeit barmy, ideas! As a native Londoner I feel obliged to insert a mini rant about how this would NEVER happen in London. Yes, the tube drivers strike occasionally, but everyone still gets to work and it's mostly just something to talk about.

However, it's not the infrequent buses or the monthly train strike that's got me all riled up. That would be silly, for annoying as these things may be they are fundamental to transport in Rome and anyone dwelling in this historic hub of society must accept them as normal and part of the city's eccentric charm. No, today I'm ranting because without giving ANY reason whatsoever this evening I had to walk home- across the whole city- because there was no Metro B Line during the RUSH HOUR.

Yes, in an hour when every bus and train carriage in the city is packed tighter than a can of sardines, and probably not smelling much better either, no explanation was offered as to why there were no trains. There was a bus replacement service though, with buses being half the size of a railway carriage. Madness! My 25 minute commute took two hours. Two hours from Testaccio, past the Colosseum, through Domus Aurea, past Santa Maria Maggiore, to Termini, all the way to uni and then my normal walk home. Thank you very much.

It's not all doom and gloom though. As I mentioned before I often end up walking most places, and quite like it. I was mostly upset about not getting my Kindle time on the train. I'd so been looking forward to playing with my new toy and getting lost in 'Wuthering Heights'. I'm such a geek!

So, sorry for the pointless rant, but now you know how transport works in Rome. Basically, not quite as it should and sometimes not at all!

p.s. TFL is much better than ATAC, but here's proof that not everyone loves them.