u/One_Fact_4291

I am absolutely fed up with the complete cancellation of phase 2, the value engineering, and the ever-ballooning costs of HS2 (with the burden falling on the taxpayer), not to mention the utter lack of urban rail projects going on in the UK. Even in London, notoriously favoured over the rest of the country when it comes to infrastructure, there will only be TWO new stations starting construction in the immediate future and only on the condition that passenger fares are raised (which doesn’t even fund the Piccadilly line signalling upgrades, only the new trains).

The government (regardless of party) seems short-sighted and is only focused on asking HS2 to address their cost issues without addressing the fundamental problems behind why all public transport infrastructure projects/programmes cost so much (which causes, or is used as justification to support, their reluctance to invest in infrastructure).

There is a sheer lack of ambition in this country, which is a shame since the UK used to be known the forerunner of the Industrial Revolution, and now even other Anglosphere countries (infamous for their high construction costs and bureaucracy) seem to be investing more into infrastructure than we are. I WANT to be optimistic but it’s hard when there’s not much to look forward to.

So my question is, what can we, as ordinary citizens, do about this? Is there more that we can do than sending emails to our MPs? What advocacy groups are worth joining? Thanks!

(Apologies if this comes across as a rant — it kind of is but I desperately want things to be better and to be actively involved in making things better)

At the gym, my sister (who is very accepting of trans people such as some of my friends) used the dedicated women's workout space and the female changing rooms, and at both times she saw a person who looked very much like a man (but sounded like they could be of any gender) go into both of these spaces. She contacted a staff member, who then asked the person, who then replied that they were a woman, so my sister didn’t act further. She told me that she feels uncomfortable with what she perceives as a man enter female spaces, is this transphobia or otherwise unjustified discomfort, what should she do if this happens again, and if this is internalised transphobia how can she get rid of it? Thanks.

(For context, she is foreign to the concept of people entering bathrooms or changing rooms according to their gender identity, since we come from a place that isn’t very progressive when it comes to attitudes towards LGBTQ+. I sent this question in another subreddit and many people said that she shouldn’t worry unless the person is actively doing something illegal like voyeurism, which I understand)

Edit: my sister explained that she did in fact directly ask the person if they were a woman, to which they replied in quite a confrontational tone. Every time she visited the gym and came across them, they stared at her in a way that made her feel uncomfortable (more intimidating than of a sexual nature). She explained that had the person been more friendly, she would’ve not been on alert as much.

I’d also like to know what other routes are worth taking due to their unique features. Thanks

I know TfL probably do automated refunds for same station exits, incomplete journeys and service delays, but do they do automated refunds for same station entries?

I checked my search history and saw that I’d received a £2 automated refund from TfL, and the only explanation I could think of was that 3 weeks ago, I tapped out at a station thinking I had something to do there on my way to my destination, realised that I didn’t have to do it, then tapped back in roughly 20 mins later, charging me two separate journeys. Was this supposed to happen?

Another interesting quirk I found out was that TfL apparently charges you the maximum fare every time you tap in, but refunds the difference every time you tap out, is this true? (I’d always thought that maximum fares were only charged after you passed maximum journey times, but I guess this makes sense since your oyster details can only be updated every time you tap on a reader)