London Buses in rush hour

scorza

scorza

scorza

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Work is sending me on a training course in smelly old central London on Thursday and Friday this week. I have the joining instructions and it seems there is a direct bus route (38) from Victoria station, where I'll be arriving to Holborn where I'm going to.

I was wondering if this was a viable alternative to the ghastly tube? or will the bus just be stuck in traffic for hours? According to the bus timetable, the journey will take between 20 and 30 minutes - is this realistic?
 
scorza said:
According to the bus timetable, the journey will take between 20 and 30 minutes - is this realistic?
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Given that its a London bus service, planned - you'd assume - by people in London, then you'd hope so! alas, if its anything like my experiences with bus timetables, then not a hope! :D

You can often walk a greater distance in 30 minutes given the freqently snarled state of our capitals roads! :(
 
Don't get the bus, buses suck worse than the tube :p

Although all around there you have dedicated bus lanes so the buses actually move at a (relatively) decent pace.

Or just hop on a tube, they aren't that bad! Just don't meander along and get in the way :p
 
I would say you'd be better off with the tube going that distance. The number 38 I'd imagine has to travel down Victoria, Parliament Square, Whitehall, Charing Cross, Strand etc... all very congested areas.
 
Rich_L said:
Don't get the bus, buses suck worse than the tube :p

Although all around there you have dedicated bus lanes so the buses actually move at a (relatively) decent pace.

Or just hop on a tube, they aren't that bad! Just don't meander along and get in the way :p
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In what way are they worse? I'm not after the fastest possible journey - just the most pleasant.
 
Buses are undoubtedly the best way to get around in my opinion in London.

I get the bus to Holborn from Shoreditch every day and it's so much better than the tube.

However, if you're near a tube station and it's not rush hour then the tube will be quicker and probably not too unbearable. If you're doing the tube in rush hour then I'd rather cut off my face with a blunt spoon and crawl their through a pit of stinging nettles.

Buses are generally quite quick unless you get unlucky. I'd imagine that journey would probably be around 30 mins tops.
 
scorza said:
In what way are they worse? I'm not after the fastest possible journey - just the most pleasant.
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Well if you get unlucky, you wait for an age, get on a packed bus and then it stop/starts it's way along and takes longer than walking :p That said the buses in central London do flow pretty well :)

If you cut through St James' Park, it's just over 2 miles, it's a lovely walk as well :)

Where is it you're actually working in/near Holborn?
 
Just get the tube, bus journey times will vary a lot (given traffic), tube will be easier and quicker. Its only the vicky and central lines to holborn which are not too bad in the morning (certainly a lot less crowded than northern and jubilee).
 
Rich_L said:
Well if you get unlucky, you wait for an age, get on a packed bus and then it stop/starts it's way along and takes longer than walking :p That said the buses in central London do flow pretty well :)

If you cut through St James' Park, it's just over 2 miles, it's a lovely walk as well :)

Where is it you're actually working in/near Holborn?
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Rosebery Avenue. Nearest tube is actually Chancery Lane.
 
Ah cool - hmm Rosebery Avenue is quite big, I trust you're at the Holborn end :p

I'd say get the tube then - Victoria line to Oxford Circus then Central lin to Chancery Lane - the Victoria line is very good and pretty reliable, Central isn't bad either.

Oh and the totty isn't bad on the Central line either - makes the commute a bit more bearable with the weather getting nicer :p
 
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Victoria Line to Oxford Circus and then Central Line to your destination. If the training course starts after 9am then the tube won't even be that packed.
 
Taxis are undoubtedly the best way to get around London (although I'm a big fan of the boat service, route permitting :))

Buses are much more pleasant than the tube if you're not in a hurry, but if you need to be somewhere quickly (and don't want a taxi), then the tube definitely wins.

I'd suggest taking the tube, changing at Oxford circus (although the Central line will be really nasty at that time of day :/ ).
 
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