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Morning travel experiences?!
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louise7755


Posts: 2
Joined: Jan 2013
Post: #1
16-01-2013 05:41 PM

Hello all,

As many other people seem to have done, I have ended up on this forum because I'm looking at moving to Honor Oak / Forest Hill from SW London. You all speak so highly of SE23, it makes it very attractive!

It might seem a silly question, but please could I ask what the train/overground is like in the morning (around 8:00am - 9:00am). Do you still get a seat?

Obviously, travelling anywhere in London in the morning is busy, but I'm aiming for 'fairly reasonable' over 'angry and squashed'- am I asking too much? Smile

I need to get to Baker Street, so I'd most likely be looking at going in to London Bridge or Canada Water and getting the Jubilee line from there.

Any thoughts/opinions would be very gratefully received, I've no idea what SE London travel is like!

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Medley


Posts: 87
Joined: Nov 2011
Post: #2
16-01-2013 05:51 PM

You won't get a seat on the Overground at that time, but it won't be unbearably crowded either (plus the carriages are air conditioned and the journey to C Water relatively short).

You'll find the interchange with the Jubilee at C Water (otherwise a handsome, pleasant station) absurdly crowded given how close the Overg and Jubilee are at that point - the tip to go for the exit and then down to the Jubilee from the ticket hall is the lifesaver here.

Trains to London B aren't quite as frequent as the Overg but you do have a chance of a seat - they're usually much longer than the Overg ones. The interchange with the Tube at London B is long-winded, but better than it was. Bear in mind that LB is in the midst (and will be for the next half decade) of enormous works. But there's always the CW option.

I'd say it's a pretty good commute overall, especially given the rental/purchase prices.

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kelmscott


Posts: 18
Joined: Sep 2011
Post: #3
16-01-2013 05:57 PM

Its a 50/50 chance of getting a seat because a lot of people get on at Forest Hill. If you go to Canada Water stand in a position where you would board the front of the train. If you get a train to London Bridge stand in a position where you would board the back of the train.

The above will increase your chances of getting a seat.

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SouthLondoner


Posts: 13
Joined: Nov 2007
Post: #4
16-01-2013 06:59 PM

I normally travel from Forest Hill to London Bridge around 8:30AM The trains at that time are normally 8 (some are 10) coaches long. If you travel in the rear of the train, you will almost always get a seat. Trains running a little earlier to London Bridge are busier but you shouldn't have a problem boarding. If you have a little flexibility with your work hours, you would be fine.

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MightyMouse


Posts: 122
Joined: Apr 2012
Post: #5
16-01-2013 07:43 PM

I go to Baker Street every morning, and after some experimentation between trains and the Overground I've settled on the train to London Bridge and then the Jubilee Line. On a perfect day I get the 7.42, and that usually gets me to Baker Street at 8.15 (well, that's when I get off the Tube). On that train I always get a seat - same goes for the next couple of trains too.

(The Jubilee line is less likely, until Westminster, and then generally a seat can be had.)

Coming home I'll generally get a seat too, unless I'm hopping on at the very last minute.

I'm v short so public transport in the whole standing up/squished in mode is quite unpleasant (armpit, anyone?) - and I've found travelling in from Forest Hill to be about as pleasant as it's going to get, really.

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nottinghillbilly


Posts: 653
Joined: Dec 2010
Post: #6
16-01-2013 07:50 PM

I do the Overground_Jubilee line commute every day, leaving in the morning any time from 7.30-8am.
Re; getting a seat....forget it! Your best chance is on the London Bridge train but that isn't guaranteed.
As previously mentioned the Overground is air-conditioned so it is'nt too hideously hot in the summer months.
You wont get a seat on the Jubilee line either so you just have to resign yourself to standing all the way to work.
The worst thing about the commute is the hideous scramble and bottle-neck trying to get onto the escalator at Canada water to change to the Jubilee line.
These negatives apart I am very delighted to have moved to Forest Hill and its well worth the 45 mins discomfort in the morning!

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Princess2011


Posts: 9
Joined: Feb 2011
Post: #7
16-01-2013 09:13 PM

I moved to Forest Hill from Tooting a few years ago and after commuting on the packed Northern line, any train journey from FH never feels as awful as that! It might be busy but it somehow helps being able to look out of the window and the journey is 15/20 mins so it's not too bad at all.

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InTheForest


Posts: 46
Joined: Feb 2012
Post: #8
16-01-2013 10:01 PM

I get the train to London Bridge about 8/half past and tend to get a seat, especially if I'm later rather than earlier. Back of the train as other have said.
Overground: probably no seat. I never do but then I only get it when the trains are screwed so it's always going to be bad. Then it's no room for people at Brockley onwards and I find it gets pretty stuffy. If you have to do the Jubilee change, get off from the front, and go UP into the ticket hall and back down again to avoid the hideous scramble that is the down escalator.
Having taken the Tube to work in the past, I find the train much nicer.

This is all from FH, HOP I think you'll be lucky to get a seat. Might on the train if you are towards the back.
And as other have pointed out there are going to be LB works which will be hellish. It's already pretty grotty and they've not started properly yet.

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Chipcity


Posts: 42
Joined: Nov 2012
Post: #9
16-01-2013 10:36 PM

I do the Forest Hill to Canada Water commute every day and although busy the people using the trains to London Bridge takes the pressure off. The overground trains are frequent, clean and not overly crowded considering a comparison to other lines. Forest Hill is far enough done the line so that you can get a standing place in the middle of the seating area to avoid the squash by the doors. Also there is always the option of the trains from catford that is particularly useful for me by using Charing Cross for West End outings. Overall FH is very well connected.

As you plan to travel to London Bridge you will have the luxury of choosing either the overground or the train you may get lucky on occasions and get a seat on the train. Before the overground arrived it was a bit hit or miss if you could actually get onto a train at peak times. It is much more civilised now and I have not had any problems.

This post was last modified: 16-01-2013 10:44 PM by Chipcity.

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Belle


Posts: 88
Joined: Dec 2009
Post: #10
17-01-2013 09:43 AM

I travel around 8.15pm and either get the 08.17 Overground to Canada Water in which case I never get a seat. However you are able to stand further down the carriage which is much more pleasant compared to standing in the crowded end by the doors (I feel especially sorry for the people getting on at Brockley as it's packed by then!).

The change at Jubliee is not that bad, it's just that as people get off the Overground a bottle neck is created as there is only one escalator. However at the worst, it's only a couple of minutes you have to wait and in most change-overs the time distance would be greater as you'd been walking through tunnels to a totally different line i.e. at Waterloo changing from the Jubliee to the Bakerloo.

Re the train: when you know where the carriage doors are, I generally do get a seat on the 8.12 or 8.21 train to London Bridge although certainly not all the time. In the evenings, I always get a seat on the train but that's because I'm early to arrive for it.

I have lived in north and south west London and the journey on the Northern line was a nightmare. It's much better being over ground compared to a dark dirty tunnel!

What I will say is that if you live at Honor Oak you will NEVER get a seat in rush hour whether you're on the train or the Overground.

Good luck with your move. SE23 is a great place to live and it's a very exciting time for the area so if you to decide to move east, I don't think you'll regret it! Thumbsup

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louise7755


Posts: 2
Joined: Jan 2013
Post: #11
17-01-2013 10:14 AM

Wow, you are all superstars, thank you! Not only did you answer my questions, you even gave helpful tips!

I'm sold, sounds reasonable enough to me...

Thank you again, I really appreciate it very much (and look forward to moving to SE23 even more). Smile

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mrcee


Posts: 128
Joined: May 2010
Post: #12
17-01-2013 01:54 PM

From experience you should get a seat on London bridge trains at hop in the rear carriage. Overground no chance of a seat.

If you buy in hop you can always use crofton park train station and do a single change @ farringdon to baker street.

I used this route when I worked great Portland Street.

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Medley


Posts: 87
Joined: Nov 2011
Post: #13
18-01-2013 12:09 PM

And on top of all this, it's an ace area anyway!

Crofton Park is an option, depending on where you are in HOP and so how close you are to CP.

Similar way of doing the same thing is to ride the Overg on to Whitechapel and change for Baker St there. The snag is that the H and City line frequency is actually much worse than the Overg's! Handy feature is ability to carry a bike back home though, which I've done often if I've been out and about near the office (Gt Portland St).

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Theotherbrian


Posts: 95
Joined: Mar 2005
Post: #14
18-01-2013 05:30 PM

Overground to Whitechapel - even at 06.44 it is difficult to find a seat, although a lot get off at Canada Water.

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rbmartin


Posts: 1,074
Joined: Nov 2007
Post: #15
19-01-2013 09:37 PM

The scramble at Canada Water for the solo escalator to the Jubilee line can be avoided by going on the escalator up to the ticket hall, which you'll see from the front carriage of the train as it arrives. Take that up, then you'll see the escalators back down again. This trick during the peak can be faster than waiting on the Overground platform to get down there.

As for me personally, I travel on Southern to London Bridge and it's never been so good since the introduction of the Overground. 9 times out of 10 I get a seat in the peaks.

Another trick if you're using the Overground route in the peaks is to board the Highbury and Islington trains. These start from Crystal Palace, so don't have as many passengers on them. As suggested above, wait at the front of the platform at FH/HOP. On the way home, board the Crystal Palace trains near the end of the platform. Again, these are less busy (although you may still have to stand) but are more bearable than the West Croydon services.

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