London underground x London taxi drivers

I don't know which is worst, the consistency of delays on the underground, engineering works or bad taxi drivers. I've made a comparison and I got to a conclusion that both are the same and when you in a hurry the only thing to do is to hope for the best.

*Tube It can be faster when: they don't get stuck between stations, don't have signal failure, when people don't get sick, when people don't press the emergency alarm on purpose, or like the other week when central line was shut down in East London - because a pipe from the Thames burst and 2 million liters of water came down to the tracks.

Rush hours are dreadful. In the morning most of the time, you need to wait for 3 or 4 trains to pass by so you can squeeze in and very likely you will be inhaling someone else bad morning breath. In the evening, I don't know if is better or worse. I guess, it depends on the weather. If is cold, is not so bad. If is hot, Mama Mia, you pray you have enter the right carriage, with good ventilation. If its raining is not much you can do then to breath odor of mold and bad dry clothes. Argh!

Trains are so dirty and sometimes (most of the times) I check the seat I'm sitting in. I'm not being a freak or have a mysophobia. Who knows who's bottom was sitting there before I sat. Also, sometimes the bars to hold on to are so greasy is gross. I wonder if a study made on how clean is the underground? would take place one day - that would be very interesting.

*Taxis I usually take taxis when I don't see myself walking for 10 minutes to get the tube in sky high heels and when I need to get up extremely early in the morning to get to work. I'm all for taking taxis but I must confess sometimes taxis drivers, drive me up the wall. I get so irritated! Most of them, don't know how to drive at all and I wonder: How the heck did you get your driving license?

One time, taxi driver was so nervous I had to guide him to my destination because he had no clue on how to get there. And that was from a famous taxi company, you know the one with big white letters on the back, you see loads of them around London. Others, think they are in a Formula 1 race track, driving like a maniac, cutting the front of cars, cyclists, buses. I just close my eyes and pray for God to save me from any accidents.

One thing that always gives me car sickness (most of them tend to drive that way), is when taxi drivers use the break so roughly that makes me to nearly jump to the front seat. I got a taxi last week and he did that ALL the time we stopped in a red light. Grrrr drives me crazy! By the end of the journey he drop me in the wrong street and had to walk for nearly 20 minutes to find the restaurant I was suppose to meet my friend. Sometimes you think oh I will get a cab will be faster! That's when you are wrong.

Last time taxi driver showed up 40 minutes late and I managed to arrived ridiculous late to my friend's birthday dinner. Tube can be stressful but they get you there one way or the other. Taxis you have to rely on drivers ability to drive properly and also in the traffic. Difficult! Anyway, I think I've said enough about that and I've made my point clear? I hope so...

Here is a picture from my friend's birthday dinner at Downtown - Cipriani last Saturday. I got there 2 hours late due to my silly decision to get a taxi instead of the tube.