"Ben692004" wrote:

Hi Everyone,

Apologies; I am aware this is a London website. However, I am struggling
to find any similar forums for Oxford.

I have been searching for a new job for nearly two years. Finally I have
found something that will really suit me, and it could be a massive
career boost. I meet all of the criteria so fancy my chances. One
problem: its in central London and I live near Oxford.

I thought initially no problem, I will get the train until I looked at
the season ticket costs (£4.5k). So I have been looking into the Oxford
Tube.

I want to get the 7am Oxford Tube service to Marble Arch. The price
would be just over £1k for a 12 month period and is actually less than I
spend on fuel for my current job!


Problem is the coach operators never give a journey time because of
traffic.

This is the 'express service' which does not stop at Lewknor,
Hillingdon, Sheperd's Bush, and Notting Hill Gate. Sounds good. Lewknor
is quite a delay I understand.

Has anyone done this journey on this specific bus? If so, please give me
an idea of the time it takes. I am aware it will be a relatively long
time, but I am prepared to do this for the career opportunity. I just
need to get an idea before applying.

Can't provide personal experience I'm afraid (well I've used it of course,
but going the other way and not for commuting however but there are plenty
of people doing this commute - just a case of tapping into their knowledge
and experience (I'm sure there must be a good Oxford local web forum -
another place to go might be the Money Saving Expert public transport
forum).

Re journey times - the Oxford Tube does say "Approximate travel time 100
minutes - longer during rush hours" on their 'Tube Times' page here (bottom
of the page):
http://www.oxfordtube.com/tubetimes.php

The competing operator, Oxford Espress, likewise says "travel time about 100
minutes depending on traffic congestion" in their timetable leaflet he
http://www.oxfordbus.co.uk/content/doc/cms/Espress%20leaflet%20-%20apr%202010.pdf

It's worth noting that the Oxford Espress service doesn't call at Lewknor
whatsoever, and when it gets into London it stays on the Westway - a
elevated motorway [1] - and makes its first call at Baker Street, before
going on to Marble Arch then Victoria. The Oxford Tube meanwhile doesn't use
the Westway but instead makes its first call at Shepherd's Bush, before
proceeding along city streets to Notting Hill Gate then Marble Arch, then
Victoria.

I've certainly heard it said that the Westway routing makes the Oxford
Espress faster into central London, and obviously it misses Lewknor so
that's a time advantage too. Fares wise they're very similar too. Though
obviously if you're heading to west London then the Oxford Tube might well
land you in a better place. Worth noting that the Oxford Espress doesn't run
through the night, unlike the Oxford Tube.

Oxford Espress:
http://www.oxfordbus.co.uk/main.php?page_id=27

Oh, and 'I've just checked the rail season ticket cost - it's £4,104 (as
opposed to 4.5k), or with a Travelcard element (for unlimited travel within
London zones 1-6) it's £4,772 - though you could be better off just using
Oyster Pay-as-you-go to pay for any Tube or bus journeys within London (it
does depend on the specifics though).

Good luck with it all.