Does the Twitterati have any idea how most people live?
The metropolitan elite seems to have forgotten that the vast majority of people travel by car.
As Britain tentatively eases its lockdown, confusion reigns over what we can and can’t do. Even government ministers have been getting the rules wrong.
But no group is more confused by the new regime than the Twitterati, and one aspect of the ‘new normal’ has driven them to apoplexy.
This week, people who cannot work from home are encouraged to go back to work, but they are discouraged from using public transport to get there. Most public transport is still running on a reduced service, just as it had been for the weeks of full lockdown. It is not illegal to take public transport, but it is discouraged.
This easy-to-understand guidance was greeted with horror on sections of social media. Many asked how the majority could be expected to get to work without public transport.
‘Most people need to use public transport’, insisted the Evening Standard’s Ayesha Hazarika.
Most people need to use public transport to get to work…
— Ayesha Hazarika (@ayeshahazarika) May 10, 2020
‘Explain to me “go to work but don’t use public transport”’, tweeted Emma Kennedy, a one-time winner of Celebrity Mastermind.
Explain to me “go to work but don’t use public transport”
— Emma Kennedy (@EmmaKennedy) May 10, 2020
Of course, everywhere apart from London, the vast majority of workers commute using a thing called a car. In England as a whole, 67 per cent of commuters travel by car. If you include other modes of private transport, then in total 82 per cent of workers do not commute with public transport.
Does the metropolitan elite have any idea how most people live?
To enquire about republishing spiked’s content, a right to reply or to request a correction, please contact the managing editor, Viv Regan.
Comments
Want to join the conversation?
Only spiked supporters and patrons, who donate regularly to us, can comment on our articles.