Working in London from the South west...
Discussion
Morning All,
So there is a job becoming available in a few months in London. It will be near the Piccadilly station, work are providing a flat (sharing) and about £400 a month towards travel home at weekends.
Initially, I thought I could just drive up on a Sunday night or Monday morning then back to Plymouth on Friday night. Everyone I have spoken to has laughed at the prospect of driving in London and getting out. Work can provide parking (not sure where)
The trains seem quite expensive, £150 to £200 a weekend, which is my monthly fuel bill at the moment. (haven't used a train in ages)
Does anyone here do southwest to London on a regular basis?
Any top tips for traveling in and around London? I understand we can claim back out zone card(what is this)
So there is a job becoming available in a few months in London. It will be near the Piccadilly station, work are providing a flat (sharing) and about £400 a month towards travel home at weekends.
Initially, I thought I could just drive up on a Sunday night or Monday morning then back to Plymouth on Friday night. Everyone I have spoken to has laughed at the prospect of driving in London and getting out. Work can provide parking (not sure where)
The trains seem quite expensive, £150 to £200 a weekend, which is my monthly fuel bill at the moment. (haven't used a train in ages)
Does anyone here do southwest to London on a regular basis?
Any top tips for traveling in and around London? I understand we can claim back out zone card(what is this)
I did exactly the same trip for a number of years - up to London on the Sunday night and back Friday afternoon.
I used to travel on a super off-peak ticket so your travel budget should cover the cost unless you want to go first class or during peak times. If you book a couple of months in advance you can save quite a lot of money over the standard fare.
The trains are regular and much quicker than driving.
The only issue I really had was how crowded the trains are in the summer but if you are a regular commuter you tend to second guess which platform the train is leaving from with reasonable accuracy.
By comparison, driving that route in the summer would be an absolute nightmare. It used to take me 5 hours on a motorbike where I could at least filter past the queues on the m5.
I used to travel on a super off-peak ticket so your travel budget should cover the cost unless you want to go first class or during peak times. If you book a couple of months in advance you can save quite a lot of money over the standard fare.
The trains are regular and much quicker than driving.
The only issue I really had was how crowded the trains are in the summer but if you are a regular commuter you tend to second guess which platform the train is leaving from with reasonable accuracy.
By comparison, driving that route in the summer would be an absolute nightmare. It used to take me 5 hours on a motorbike where I could at least filter past the queues on the m5.
Piccadilly Circus is right in the middle of the West End, there is no free easy parking, £40-50 per day, it's in the congestion charge zone, £12/day.
Where is the flat located? I suspect further out into the suburbs, you'll need to tube it in using an Oyster travel card. The tube is in zones, Piccadilly Circus is in zone 1, outer suburbs are in zones 2-6 and up to 9, you pay more for each zone travelled. It's going to cost you maybe £10 a day.
Hopefully the flat is located on the west side of town, will make getting out to Plymouth a lot easier, if it's east forget driving, it will take you and hour to drive to the M4.
Really need to know where the flat is located to give more advice.
Where is the flat located? I suspect further out into the suburbs, you'll need to tube it in using an Oyster travel card. The tube is in zones, Piccadilly Circus is in zone 1, outer suburbs are in zones 2-6 and up to 9, you pay more for each zone travelled. It's going to cost you maybe £10 a day.
Hopefully the flat is located on the west side of town, will make getting out to Plymouth a lot easier, if it's east forget driving, it will take you and hour to drive to the M4.
Really need to know where the flat is located to give more advice.
Edited by megaphone on Saturday 18th January 12:32
Edited by megaphone on Saturday 18th January 12:33
dsgrnmcm said:
It will be near the Piccadilly station, work are providing a flat (sharing)
Is work located near Piccadilly Circus station, or near some as yet unidentified station that is on the Piccadilly line?Where is the flat located?
You have 2 problems - getting from the flat to work, and getting from either work or the flat back to Plymouth.
It's not really worth considering options until you have both locations nailed down 100%. If you have a nice considerate employer, then the flat should be close to the work location. However, if you have a tight fisted employer, then it could take an hour or even more to commute into central London every day - each way.
Er mistake number one. The nearest station is Paddington. Work is next to great Portland street station (tube)
Wont know flat location till April. Can park at the work car park. And Google tells me it is just outside the LEZ zone,
Driving seems a crap idea time wise, especially on a Friday...then add summer.
Wont know flat location till April. Can park at the work car park. And Google tells me it is just outside the LEZ zone,
Driving seems a crap idea time wise, especially on a Friday...then add summer.
Tyre Smoke said:
The whole thing sounds dreadful to me.
Surely it's not worth it?
This.Surely it's not worth it?
Spending the whole week away from home living like a student, with only enough travel costs to get the horribly over-crowded off peak trains booked in advance (those plymouth trains are always stuffed....it used to be like wacky races when the platform number appeared on the board and people run to it so they can get a seat...presume it is still the same).
GCH said:
This.
Spending the whole week away from home living like a student, with only enough travel costs to get the horribly over-crowded off peak trains booked in advance (those plymouth trains are always stuffed....it used to be like wacky races when the platform number appeared on the board and people run to it so they can get a seat...presume it is still the same).
I guess it depends... OP - is this an internal transfer? Or a new role/new company?Spending the whole week away from home living like a student, with only enough travel costs to get the horribly over-crowded off peak trains booked in advance (those plymouth trains are always stuffed....it used to be like wacky races when the platform number appeared on the board and people run to it so they can get a seat...presume it is still the same).
What is the upside to balance the loss of social time/you time? Trailing back on a Friday night back in on a Sunday night (someone always sets a 10am Monday meeting)... does it lead to a big career jump?
Life is a balance, but tying yourself to a life where the company makes you share a flat with a stranger sounds like a step back.
You have to also ask, "why can't they attract someone in London, given the massive range of people available?" - is it down to a narrow resource pool (and so are you undervaluing yourself?) or that they are underpaying for London and only by bringing in from lower cost areas, even adding accomodation and travel, you are still a lower cost option?
(cynical, me?)
I sure as hell wouldn't do it!
You can, it seems, get the train for under £100 return on Trainline, but even so it's still over 3 hours each way (and that's just Plymouth to Paddington with no onwards travel either end), so unless you can negotiate leaving work at Friday lunchtime and travelling back on Monday morning, it's hardly worth going home for the weekend!
You can, it seems, get the train for under £100 return on Trainline, but even so it's still over 3 hours each way (and that's just Plymouth to Paddington with no onwards travel either end), so unless you can negotiate leaving work at Friday lunchtime and travelling back on Monday morning, it's hardly worth going home for the weekend!
dsgrnmcm said:
Morning All,
The trains seem quite expensive, £150 to £200 a weekend, which is my monthly fuel bill at the moment. (haven't used a train in ages)
If you book a few 2/3/4 weeks ahead it's a lot cheaper.The trains seem quite expensive, £150 to £200 a weekend, which is my monthly fuel bill at the moment. (haven't used a train in ages)
e.g. (trainline can be your friend)
https://www.thetrainline.com/book/results?origin=0...
dsgrnmcm said:
Er mistake number one. The nearest station is Paddington. Work is next to great Portland street station (tube)
Wont know flat location till April. Can park at the work car park. And Google tells me it is just outside the LEZ zone,
Driving seems a crap idea time wise, especially on a Friday...then add summer.
Paddington to Grt Portland St is an easy tube ride, 3 stops on the Hammersmith and City/Circle line. Wont know flat location till April. Can park at the work car park. And Google tells me it is just outside the LEZ zone,
Driving seems a crap idea time wise, especially on a Friday...then add summer.
Grt Portland St is right on the edge of the CC/ULEZ zone, if you can park at work just make sure you don't stray into it, you can skirt it to get down to the A4/M4. That said you'd be mad to drive in, better off parking at the flat if you can and just tube it.
Are you single? Any family ties? If not then why go home every weekend? London can be fun if you're young, I'm sure there will be some after work drinks on a Friday....
The drivng thing is the weekly cost, £50 in Derv (plus running costs) Vs £150+ on the train. Not to mention convenience.
The Mrs lives in Plymouth, and this job may only be for 22 months. I'm popping up there in a few weeks to have a look at the place and meet the team, so I will probably drive in and see how good, bad it is...
The Mrs lives in Plymouth, and this job may only be for 22 months. I'm popping up there in a few weeks to have a look at the place and meet the team, so I will probably drive in and see how good, bad it is...
dsgrnmcm said:
The drivng thing is the weekly cost, £50 in Derv (plus running costs) Vs £150+ on the train. Not to mention convenience.
Cost is the least of the considerations here. Convenience is key, but the main thing is comparing a few hours on the train in which to snoooze/watch Netflix/work/drink, versus a five hour drive at 3am on Monday morning and the same back at 6pm on Friday night. I promise you, both of those will be the absolute last thing you'll feel like doing and will both start and end the week on a truly s
tty note.First preference would be to relocate the missus and live in London, at least temporarily. If you can't do that then it's train all the way.
deckster said:
I promise you, both of those will be the absolute last thing you'll feel like doing and will both start and end the week on a truly stty note.
Especially in the winter. And then in the summer it will be missed BBQs, summer traffic heading for the coast, etctty note.Don't underestimate the impact on a relationship when you are away 5 days a week.
I’d be wanting to drive up Sunday evening which means it’s highly likely to be totally clear getting there and the shortest of times to travel.
I’d be wanting to leave Friday PM say 2:30pm latest as a compromise for the company vs your compromise for Sunday. Or if they will not then have an early start 7am say so you’ve covered hours and will be back “home” for just gone 5pm Friday night.
Personally I’d not do the train - I dislike them as I want my music my comfy seat my choice of temp the fact I leave my door at the time I want and don’t have to pay for station parking and then wait for the train. Plus I can chuck as much stuff as I want to carry in the car vs having to carry around my stuff.
You also say it’s for £400pcm extra is that before or after tax .... then depending on what tax rate you are on may mean it’s a trivial amount extra for the compromises your going to have to make.
I’d be wanting to leave Friday PM say 2:30pm latest as a compromise for the company vs your compromise for Sunday. Or if they will not then have an early start 7am say so you’ve covered hours and will be back “home” for just gone 5pm Friday night.
Personally I’d not do the train - I dislike them as I want my music my comfy seat my choice of temp the fact I leave my door at the time I want and don’t have to pay for station parking and then wait for the train. Plus I can chuck as much stuff as I want to carry in the car vs having to carry around my stuff.
You also say it’s for £400pcm extra is that before or after tax .... then depending on what tax rate you are on may mean it’s a trivial amount extra for the compromises your going to have to make.
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