On Fri, 24 Feb 2012 19:27:46 -0000, "Peter Masson"
wrote:



"Chris Read" wrote in message
.. .

If I arrive at London Bridge (National Rail) at 07.14 next Wednesday,
how would you rate my chances of getting to Paddington, by cab, for
the 07.45 departure to Cardiff?

Marginally less than doing it by tube (Jubilee to Baker Street then
Bakerloo).

Is going to Charing Cross an available alternative option ?
(then one Bakerloo train to Paddington with no change)

Peter
(memories of the times I arrived at Paddington on a train due at 1738 and
caught the 1750 from Charing Cross - though it was 1967, the train into
Paddington was often up to 10 minutes early, and after 10 July 1967 almost
all peak trains from Charing Cross had a late start)

" wrote:

Seems risky in the extreme. Where does your journey actually commence?
Just wondering whether there is any option of travelling to Reading
(not via London) and picking up your onward connection there at c.
0810?

Starting from Bishopstone on the 05.47, ideally.

I've looked at the Gatwick - Reading hop, which I've done before to
avoid cross-London, but it's not conveniently timed, and not assisted
by being pretty much all stations from Guildford early in the morning
- the standard daytime timetable skips more stops.

Another option is to bale at Gatwick (06.41) onto the GatEx (06.50),
arrive Victoria 07.20. Six minutes later into zone one, and risking a
change - and a Wessie! - but that much nearer to Paddington. Although
GatEx struggles to keep to a 30 minute timing in the peaks, which
unnerves me somewhat.

Still, twenty minutes in a cab should be sufficient for Victoria -
Paddington, especially as I don't mind running from the last set of
traffic lights or wherever. It's a fairly swift jaunt up Park Lane and
Edgware Road, normally. I can pick up my tickets in the +9 connection
at Gatwick

I need to be in Splott, about a mile from Cardiff Central, for 10.30.
The 07.45 gets into Central for 09.48, and the 08.15 for 10.21. The
world wouldn't end if I was ten minutes late - it's not a job
interview - so my thoughts were to aim for the 07.45 (and walk at the
Cardiff end), with the 08.15 (and cab at the Cardiff end) as a back
up. I just have a nagging feeling that if I try this, I'll narrowly
miss the 07.45 (which will run perfectly), whilst the 08.15 will be
cancelled or heavily delayed, as often seems to happen when you're
already cutting it fine.....

There is an alternative, being the 05.11 from Bishopstone, which
(changing at Lewes) hurtles through to Victoria for 06.32.

But I like my under-used bed.

Thanks to all for the suggestions.

Chris

On 24/02/2012 19:05, Chris Read wrote:

If I arrive at London Bridge (National Rail) at 07.14 next Wednesday,
how would you rate my chances of getting to Paddington, by cab, for
the 07.45 departure to Cardiff?

I will need to pick up my ticket from a machine at Paddington, unless
I can do that in my four minute connection at Lewes.

Can't you buy tickets for the entire journey at your initial station?
Buying a through ticket should also get you your Tube ticket (shows an
extra + on your ticket) so you won't have to buy that separately.
(At an extortionate £4 each way - Boris doesn't like non-Oystered
non-Londoners passing through his territory.) You could pick your
tickets up in advance to save hassle on the day. (You could also order
them on-line, although you are then committed to which station you
have to collect them from.)

If you can make Lewes 36' earlier you could catch the 05:29 into
London Victoria. That would give you a shorter, single journey on
the Circle line to Paddington, and plenty of time to make it in.

For those favouring the avoid London option note that:
1) the Redhill to Reading service is slow (lots of stops),
2) Sussex trains bypass Redhill, so extra changes are needed to
get there (e.g. Brighton or Gatwick).


--
Graham Nye
news(a)thenyes.org.uk

On 25/02/2012 01:01, Graham Nye wrote:

Can't you buy tickets for the entire journey at your initial station?
Buying a through ticket should also get you your Tube ticket (shows an
extra + on your ticket) so you won't have to buy that separately.
(At an extortionate £4 each way - Boris doesn't like non-Oystered
non-Londoners passing through his territory.)

At least you /can/ pass through London, unlike, say, Paris.

--
Arthur Figgis Surrey, UK

"Arthur Figgis" wrote in message
o.uk...

There is always the Northern Line to Moorgate or Kings Cross/St
Pancras, then the Hammersmith and City Line to Paddington.

Either has to be quicker than a taxi from London Bridge to Paddington.

Then there is the LUL/taxi option with the Northern Line to Euston and
a short taxi ride to Paddington ... ;-)


Why go down into the Northern? Thameslink to Moorgate

ITYM Farringdon?

Mornington Crescent!

Regards

Jonathan

On 25/02/2012 09:01, Arthur Figgis wrote:
On 25/02/2012 01:01, Graham Nye wrote:

Can't you buy tickets for the entire journey at your initial station?
Buying a through ticket should also get you your Tube ticket (shows an
extra + on your ticket) so you won't have to buy that separately.
(At an extortionate £4 each way - Boris doesn't like non-Oystered
non-Londoners passing through his territory.)

At least you /can/ pass through London, unlike, say, Paris.


In the sense of your through rail tickets not covering the Métro
connection, presumably? (I haven't tried that combination.)

Still a single Métro ticket is only 1.70 euros (£1.46) which is rather
more reasonable than the Boris fine if you don't order through tickets
across London.

(More information on Métro tickets at http://www.seat61.com/Paris-metro.htm ,
to save you all from my witterings.)


--
Graham Nye
news(a)thenyes.org.uk

On Feb 24, 11:55*pm, Chris Read wrote:
Starting from Bishopstone on the 05.47, ideally.


No matter which way you shake it this realistically provides good
connection opportunities for the 0815 ex Paddington rather than the
0745 either at Paddington or at Reading (via Redhill).

--
gordon

On 25/02/2012 13:30, Graham Nye wrote:
On 25/02/2012 09:01, Arthur Figgis wrote:
On 25/02/2012 01:01, Graham Nye wrote:

Can't you buy tickets for the entire journey at your initial station?
Buying a through ticket should also get you your Tube ticket (shows an
extra + on your ticket) so you won't have to buy that separately.
(At an extortionate £4 each way - Boris doesn't like non-Oystered
non-Londoners passing through his territory.)

At least you /can/ pass through London, unlike, say, Paris.


In the sense of your through rail tickets not covering the Métro
connection, presumably? (I haven't tried that combination.)

Obviously, because it isn't possible, to the bemusement of countless
Britons told that foreign railways are so much better and more
integrated and customer focused...

Still a single Métro ticket is only 1.70 euros (£1.46) which is rather
more reasonable than the Boris fine if you don't order through tickets
across London.

But the Delanoë fine involves playing hunt the ticket machine, followed
by hunt the right sort of machine, followed by hunt the ticket window
when the machine farts in the general direction of your foreign bank
card, long queues, and navigating an atrium designed by Escher. All
while fending off beggars, which aren't supposed to exist abroad because
they didn't have Mrs T to invent poverty.

And Oyster pre-dates Boris. In fact the concept predates Ken...

--
Arthur Figgis Surrey, UK

On 25/02/2012 20:37, Arthur Figgis wrote:
On 25/02/2012 13:30, Graham Nye wrote:

Still a single Métro ticket is only 1.70 euros (£1.46) which is rather
more reasonable than the Boris fine if you don't order through tickets
across London.

But the Delanoë fine involves playing hunt the ticket machine,

We found one on the far side of the Gare du Nord, hiding behind
lots of kiosks. However both http://www.seat61.com/Paris-metro.htm
and http://parisbytrain.com/gare-du-nord-photos/ suggest there are
more downstairs, so perhaps we should have headed downstairs
towards the Métro lines before hunting for tickets.

followed by hunt the right sort of machine,

A green one. They even work in English. Spiffing.

followed by hunt the ticket window
when the machine farts in the general direction of your foreign bank
card,

My chip'n'pin card was fine, thanks. There are a number of American
web guides to Paris travel, complaining that foreign cards don't work.
No, just yours.

long queues, and navigating an atrium designed by Escher.

Ooh, it's not as bad as an Ikea. And the staff don't pelt you with
Swedish Meatballs as you desperately search for an exit.

And Oyster pre-dates Boris. In fact the concept predates Ken...

I think the idea of jacking up the cash price to make Londoners
swallow their Oyster cards and hence punish occasional travellers
from outside the home counties is more recent.


--
Graham Nye
news(a)thenyes.org.uk

In article ,
(Graham Nye) wrote:

And Oyster pre-dates Boris. In fact the concept predates Ken...

I think the idea of jacking up the cash price to make Londoners
swallow their Oyster cards and hence punish occasional travellers
from outside the home counties is more recent.

Ken, definitely.

--
Colin Rosenstiel