One of the big changes since moving to Glasgow has been getting used to the suburban public transport network. For example, just the other day, I met friends in town after work, and then came home afterwards – something I do quite a bit. The easiest way to get from Glasgow University to the city centre is by subway, but to get back to my flat it’s best to take the train. Annoyingly, you can’t do the journey on the one ticket, so you have to buy a subway ticket and then a train ticket.

Glasgow lacks London’s smoothness in terms of integrated transport. There, everything’s divided into concentric zones, and the ticket you get covers all forms of transport (underground, trains, buses and riverboats) within the zones you’ve paid for.

Granted, Glasgow does have the roundabout ticket, but I only discovered that the other day and I don’t think it’s all that well-publicised. Plus, at £4.50 it’s a fair whack of cash considering it doesn’t include buses.

On a slightly different note, a friend sent me this wonderful webpage the other day – it’s the Glasgow Subway Challenge, as completed by a group of Glasgow University students. Two stations are 55 seconds apart on the subway: can you get off at one station and make it overground to the other station in time to catch the same train?

It’s a brilliantly-made video, and a slight step up in technological and human endurance from my own favourite game, the Hyndland railway station underpass “hold your breath” challenge.

I’ve only ever succeeded once.