Flying is the easy bit but the transfers are something else
The Independent|October 02, 2024
Dublin, Bristol, Athens and many more... readers share their bemusement at busy airports with terrible transport links
SIMON CALDER
Flying is the easy bit but the transfers are something else

When you are making time-critical decisions about airport ground transportation, you need accurate advice.

At Athens airport I needed to get to Piraeus for a ferry to the island of Poros - and time was against me. The easyJet plane from Gatwick had arrived 10 minutes early, but from the performance of the ground staff you would infer that no aircraft with passengers on board had ever arrived before. The processes were so slow that it took 50 minutes from touchdown to exiting the airport, and that was with cabin baggage. Heaven knows what happened to those who had checked luggage in.

One train an hour runs to Piraeus, and it would just about get me there on time. But with 20 minutes before it left, I thought I should check if the X96 Piraeus Express bus was leaving imminently. There was one immediately outside the airport terminal, seemingly ready to go.

This story is from the October 02, 2024 edition of The Independent.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the October 02, 2024 edition of The Independent.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM THE INDEPENDENTView All
Why fans will shrug at loss of Man Utd's brightest star
The Independent

Why fans will shrug at loss of Man Utd's brightest star

A couple of years ago, if the news had broken that Marcus Rashford wished to leave Manchester United and seek his future elsewhere, the effect on the club's fans would have been dramatic.

time-read
4 mins  |
December 21, 2024
Will Usyk or Fury 'get old overnight' in their rematch?
The Independent

Will Usyk or Fury 'get old overnight' in their rematch?

In boxing we have an expression we use during a fight, if one of the boxers looks bad: \"He got old overnight.\"

time-read
3 mins  |
December 21, 2024
O'Shea is loving the battles at the Republic of Ipswich
The Independent

O'Shea is loving the battles at the Republic of Ipswich

As a player who was clocked as the fourth fastest in the Premier League last season, Dara O'Shea relishes it \"when I'm up against a striker and it's me and him\".

time-read
6 mins  |
December 21, 2024
Sliding doors moment that saw Spurs embrace chaos
The Independent

Sliding doors moment that saw Spurs embrace chaos

Tottenham fans will wonder what could have been tomorrow as Arne Slot brings league leaders Liverpool to north London

time-read
3 mins  |
December 21, 2024
HS2 doesn't need a 'reset'...this line never made sense
The Independent

HS2 doesn't need a 'reset'...this line never made sense

Nobody knows how much it will cost or when it will be done. With our creaking transport system, the mounting billions would be better spent elsewhere, says Chris Blackhurst

time-read
5 mins  |
December 21, 2024
Hope for economic growth dampened by uncertainty
The Independent

Hope for economic growth dampened by uncertainty

Fun fact: the OECD still predicts that Britain's economy will be one of the stars of the G7 during 2025 with growth of 1.7 per cent, lagging only behind the US at 2.4 per cent.

time-read
3 mins  |
December 21, 2024
Trump's war on the press is straight from Putin playbook
The Independent

Trump's war on the press is straight from Putin playbook

The pen may not be mightier than the sword, but it still has the power to wound. How else to explain the extraordinary remarks of the former Russian president, Dmitry Medvedev, this week in which he revealed how stung he'd been by an editorial in The Times?

time-read
4 mins  |
December 21, 2024
Musk calls far-right AfD party saviours of Germany
The Independent

Musk calls far-right AfD party saviours of Germany

Elon Musk has described the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party as the country's saviour, sparking calls from Berlin for the US billionaire to \"stay out\" of their politics.

time-read
2 mins  |
December 21, 2024
Macron swears in heated exchanges with crowds in cyclone-battered Mayotte
The Independent

Macron swears in heated exchanges with crowds in cyclone-battered Mayotte

French president Emmanuel Macron swore during an exchange as he was heckled by angry residents of a Mayotte neighbourhood ravaged by cyclone Chido, telling them: “If it wasn’t for France, you’d be 10,000 times deeper in shit.”

time-read
3 mins  |
December 21, 2024
Store guard helped uncover abuse of Pelicot by husband
The Independent

Store guard helped uncover abuse of Pelicot by husband

When Gisèle Pelicot was called to talk to police in November 2020, she believed it was to discuss upskirting allegations made against her husband of 50 years.

time-read
2 mins  |
December 21, 2024