I don't think there's any sort of commute in London which is entirely stress-free, but the point I was making was that if you get a Lewisham bus from FH (or HOP) it's probably the least evil. My other half tends to get a P4 from HOP and it's OK most of the time - certainly compared with going to LB and trying to cram onto the Jubilee Line it's preferable on most days.

As for the idea of train to NXG and then bus from there - not good. New Cross Gate always seems to be a horrible place to get any bus from, worse when you're travelling to Lewisham, maybe because it's reasonably close to the end of the routes.

I dread to think what the impact of the ELL closure will be on these already congested options, notwithstanding the Bus Replacement Services.

On the plus side, cycling is lovely at this time of the year as the fair weather cyclists tend to drop off in numbers.