commuting

Hi 2 quick questions:
1 - I am planning on living in Guildford but will probably be working in London. I have read that Guildford is a commutor town but I am confused about how you actually get to London. I went to the Rail London (I think that is the name) website and it said that a train ticket to London was 30 pounds. So I'm assuming there is another way or maybe I just did something wrong?
2 - My husband will be working at the RHS garden in Wisley. Again, we are confused about how he gets there (we will not have a car) GreenEyesnUK answered this in another thread and said he did not know if it was possible w/o a car. No offense GreenEyesnUK but I am hoping you are wrong  That would mean DH would live in the dorm and I would live in the flat. Not a fun thought!!
any info is greatly appreciated!
belle

Hmmm, Belle, I will ask my husband about getting to Wisley.

Do you know where in Guildford you will live?  I'm near the town center and it takes about 15 min to walk to the train.  It should not cost that much at all!!!!  http://www.swtrains.co.uk/  I think this is the site you would use.  Plus you can get monthly passes so it's even less.

Stacey's getting a neighbor!!! 

1. Guilford to LONDON.

Train, 40 minutes by the fastest service, frequent - by which I mean up to 6 times an hour in the rush hour. Services run from around 5a.m. up to very late in the evening.

Your 30 pound return cost is probably correct [Edit - See my follow up below. That's a FIRST CLASS fare I think]. if you turn up at the station in the rush hour and buy a ticket for 1 day. If you buy a "season ticket" for one week (as many journies as you like in the week), you'll pay around 2 to 3 times the daily fare for the whole week and you can save more if you go for a longer period ticket.

2. Guldford to WISLEY

Tellings - Golden Miller bus service number 515.  From Guildford bus station at 07:30, then hourly from 08:40 direct to Wisley. Journey time 22 minutes. Runs Monday to Saturday.  Return services on the hour until 19:00 (last bus of the day). No evening or Sunday service.

Source: Xephos

[Edit to add .... your husband's colleagues might also have the same commute / situation, so there might turn out to be ride share possibilities, or even some sort of shuttle arranged by "Wisley" themselves. I do note elsewhere that someone who worked there said they didn't know of such a service, but car drivers aren't always aware of other options / the bus that goes past the road end.  Beware that under regulations, bus companies can change routes and timetables with 6 weeks notice (though the don't change them dramatically with great frequency) so you might want to recheck nearer the time]

Your 30 pound return cost is probably correct if you turn up at the station in the rush hour and buy a ticket for 1 day. If you buy a "season ticket" for one week (as many journies as you like in the week), you'll pay around 2 to 3 times the daily fare for the whole week and you can save more if you go for a longer period ticket.

Wow, I had no idea!!!!  That is insane!!!  (Sorry, just really unbelievable the amount!!!)

Wow, I had no idea!!!!  That is insane!!!  (Sorry, just really unbelievable the amount!!!)

"Don't believe everything you read".   I thought the 30 quid sounded about right, but after seeing you're follow up I've checked and the current daily fare is 16.50 standard class, and just over 32 pounds first class.  This makes it quite a cheap line at 55p return per mile.

The fare from our local railhead (Chippenham) to London is 81 pound return standard class after the price rise last month ... for a journey of 94 miles. That's 86p per mile. Perhaps this should go in greivances?

Welcome to the crazy world of the UK's privatised public transport system!!!

Ways of cutting your travel costs ...

1) If you are on flexi-time, travel off peak after 9.30 am, when the Guildford/London day round trip fare is £9.90
2) Your employer may offer an interest free travelcard loan (most big employers do), so you'd be able to purchase an annual ticket, which is the most cost effective ticket and allows you free travel throughout London and gets you and up to 3 travelling companions 1/3 off all other train fares
3) Fare dodge (no, only joking!)

See www.nationalrail.co.uk for an independent guide to costs and train times.

On the good side, you'll never have to wait long for a train (6 per hour) and it is a fast service (30 mins?).

Also, the RHS garden at Wisley is BEAUTIFUL and Guildford is a very pleasant place to live!

Good luck!!

Thanks for all the information and advice!
I feel better about getting myself to work. Now, just need to figure the husband out! From the maps and other info I have seen it appears that Wisley is about 8-10 miles from Guildford. Do you think he could ride his bike there? Has anyone taken a bike on a plane before? sounds like fun to me
belle

Do you know where in Guildford you will be?  Do you have a flat/house yet?

Do you know where in Guildford you will be? Do you have a flat/house yet?

No, no plans that definite yet. We are just trying to figure out the logistics. He has not yet applied to the program - we want to be reasonably sure that this is possible before we get in too deep.
In case no one has figured it out yet - I'm the worrywart and my husband is the free spirit!
belle

No, no plans that definite yet. We are just trying to figure out the logistics. He has not yet applied to the program - we want to be reasonably sure that this is possible before we get in too deep.
In case no one has figured it out yet - I'm the worrywart and my husband is the free spirit!
belle

We are very much alike then

If your husband is enough of a hard-core biker then 8-10 miles is nothing.
DW knew a fellow student in Stoke who biked about 30-40 miles to Stafford for his placement work and loved it.
8-10 miles should be doable, but of course, will he want to do it when he gets really cold or pisses down with rain?

People in the UK cycle along 60 or even 70 MPH roads with no cycle lanes so again it's all down to his inclination.  Of course, having a good cycle route there would help, I'm sure.

In regards to train tickets, once you get outside of London Underground area, rail fares go up quite a bit more, especially going into London.  High Wycombe station near us charges something like £14-15 off peak for a travelcard return to Central London.  Meanwhile, just down the road in Amersham which is on the end of the Metropolitan line and is only a few minutes faster to Central London it is only about £7 off peak, so close to half the price.  Buses are the same way, the Mayor of London has subsidized bus routes and train routes while the Home Counties often charge much more because they haven't got the same subsidizing funds or they just don't have the inclination to do it.

Matt

30-40 miles?!?! sheesh...
He used to bike to school and that was about 10 miles so biking is a possibility. He has never been concerned about the weather when riding. His favorite story is the time he rode to class and had icicles in his beard when he got there.
-belle-