One reporter took a nine-hour £15 overnight Megabus journey from London to Scotland, to dodge through-the-roof rail fares amid the cost-of-living crisis.
MyLondon reporter Sam Ormiston had wanted to visit his family back up in Scotland but baulked when confronted by sky-high train ticket prices.
Instead of shelling out around £120 for a return, as Brits feel the crunch of the current crisis, he decided to be a bit more savvy with his money.
Sam turned to the trusty overnight Megabus which would take him the same 418 mile journey but at a fraction of the price - costing only £15.
That’s how he ended up boarding the overnight bus from London Victoria Coach station to Edinburgh.
Despite not having the highest of hopes for the journey, between not catching a wink of sleep, the cramped seat and in-demand toilet, it was worse than he had feared.
The journey would take him up the west coast of England and through rural southern Scotland.
Sam said: “I'm no stranger to the Megabus. I used it regularly as a skint student but that was usually with a group of friends and some cans - and we were normally travelling somewhere exciting like a music festival.
“It's an incredibly different vibe catching it on your own, completely sober and exhausted after a long day at work.”
His journey didn’t get off to a good start as when he arrived at the station at 11:15pm, with 15 minutes to spare before departure, he realised he was hungry, and that everywhere seemed to be closed.
He said: “There were staff milling around at small sandwich shops but none of them appeared keen to make eye contact and sell one last item before heading home for the night. And I don't blame them.
“Moments later as I was approaching platform 16, I was relieved to see a small corner shop - simply called 'Treats' - which has apparently been serving hungry bus passengers 'hand made fresh food since 1979.
"The shop owner looked livid when I walked inside, sweating buckets, as he was evidently about to shut up shop.
“I got the picture when he yelled 'NO MORE CUSTOMERS' as two or three more people filtered in, and he constructed a makeshift barrier made out of sweetie shelves and a trolley to stop hungry Londoners in their tracks. Panicking, I quickly grabbed a random array of snacks, ending up with two bottles of water, a Kinder Bueno, a packet of McCoy's BBQ crisps and - last but most definitely least - a 'Gourmet' chicken burger.”
Sam counted himself lucky he was able to escape the shop supplies intact. When he got to the megabus though he was surprised to find the Monday night shuttle was nearly completely full.
However, if that wasn’t bad enough, due to his late arrival he was faced with being one of the last on the bus, and sitting next to the toilet.
Early on he tucked into his “underwhelming” £8 meal deal in which the “gourmet” burger was definitely not gourmet - instead it was "cold chicken, lumpy mayo and a sad, solitary tomato".
But “I was fed and watered and ready for the long journey ahead. Or so I thought.”
Whilst the passenger sitting next to him fell asleep nearly instantly and didn’t wake until the next morning, Sam found himself kept up by the loud snores and cries of his fellow travellers.
It wasn’t until they were passing Birmingham that he decided to brave the toilet, following the ten to 12 people who had so far. However, what he found left him desperately “trying not to throw up”.
He said: “I wanted to get changed in to my shorts and T-shirt, as it appeared we were running out of oxygen inside the bus. Hot and sweaty, with no room for a 6 foot 2 man to stand up straight, I climbed on in.
“I was shocked to discover the toilet seat up when I entered with a toilet almost overflowing with urine.
“Trying not to throw up, I desperately pressed the button to realise that it all flushed away instantly. It was quite the relief, but I have no idea what my fellow passengers were thinking.”
Sam survived his bus journey onwards and a stop at Sandbach Services. But the hours of the bus journey rolled on and on as he got only “10 minutes or so” sleep.
The intrepid journeyman said: “It was very hot, and a little cramped, but luckily I had an aisle seat so I could stretch out my legs, when someone wasn't climbing over me to get to the loo.
“As night turned to day and the sun shone over the M6, in unison we all awoke as the bus came to a sudden halt. All we could see in front of us was a humongous queue of traffic.
“After what felt like an eternity but was only actually 30 minute, we were soon on our way again. We later found out that the delay was due to a crash south of Carlisle, where thankfully no one was seriously hurt.”
The delay meant they did eventually reach Edinburgh but an hour late at around 8:30am. From there, he got to the nearest train station and was headed home in no time.
Even in the face of sweaty conditions, urine-filled-toilets and a mammoth journey, Sam was surprisingly positive about his chances of coming back again.
He said: “Despite all my criticisms of the Megabus experience, though, I'll almost certainly be back. They're almost never delayed, this trip I think was an exception.
“They're also cheap, and to quote one of my fellow passengers who was travelling up to Scotland to visit her long-distance boyfriend, ‘I refuse to pay full price for anything.’”
