Best place to drive out of London

[HodorARL]

Hello

I’ve been driving for 5 years and want out of London. I love my job but inner London is starting to wear me down. Also stopping every 3 mins is a pain. So looking for more laid back more scenic driving. Thinking Cornwall etc. Don’t mind going into London then out again. Or even aboard has anyone moved country.

 

[LSWR Cavalier]

Driving is just as troublesome on the motorway or open highway, or even worse, more dangerous. Best to give it up if possible, I did when I retired.

 

[Frankie4763]

Driving is just as troublesome on the motorway or open highway, or even worse, more dangerous. Best to give it up if possible, I did when I retired.

I think he means driving trains

 

[Taunton]

Unfortunately Cornwall is rapidly filling up with London & SE expats, bringing downsides (eg substantial property prices/rents) without the upsides (eg limited public transport, poor public services, absence of good shops).

 

[HeritageSussex]

Do you want to stay with passenger trains or would you consider freight?
GBRF have driving jobs available in some locations that seem good choices.

Header - GBRF

GWR also seem to have plenty of opportunities for qualified drivers.

 

[Class2ldn]

Do you want to stay with passenger trains or would you consider freight?
GBRF have driving jobs available in some locations that seem good choices.

Header - GBRF

GWR also seem to have plenty of opportunities for qualified drivers.

I've been waiting nearly 18 months for an interview with gwr , they definitely are not in a rush lol

 

[LSWR Cavalier]

I think he means driving trains

Sorry, I think so too. This subject has been mentioned here before, many people want to leave London and not many want to go to London.

 

[irish_rail]

Unfortunately Cornwall is rapidly filling up with London & SE expats, bringing downsides (eg substantial property prices/rents) without the upsides (eg limited public transport, poor public services, absence of good shops).

Cockney is now the accent most often heard in and around Kernow these days and its only going to get much worse in coming years....
What gets me is the ignorance that Cornwall is considered by many to be a separate Celtic nation, however you say that to many expats and they look at you as if you are mad. No different really to Wales or Scotland , but in the mass public consciousness its just a nice part of England to retire to.....

 

[dctraindriver]

Cockney is now the accent most often heard in and around Kernow these days and its only going to get much worse in coming years....
What gets me is the ignorance that Cornwall is considered by many to be a separate Celtic nation, however you say that to many expats and they look at you as if you are mad. No different really to Wales or Scotland , but in the mass public consciousness its just a nice part of England to retire to.....

As a cockney who loves Devon and Cornwall I can certainly understand some local resentment towards outsiders moving in. I’d love to move down that neck of the woods however I’m now thinking would I be doing the right thing?

I’ve read so many reports about the youngsters being forced out of places where they want to live because rent and property prices have shot up while their salaries haven’t. Of course tourism is a major revenue stream for the area so it’s a love hate thing I guess. But the rich second home owners renting their properties out making an utter fortune now as well as people deciding to move further away and work from home driving up prices has changed it even more so. However I don’t think it’s just the west now, seems the pretty parts of Wales, Yorkshire, Lakes etc are suffering the same issue.

Sorry I’ve gone off on a bit of a grumble…..

OP do you work for TOC that has a mixture of work? If so have you considered a move to another depot that has work that has less stops? I did this, didn’t have to move and the work is substantially better.

 

[Jimbo12345]

Thought this was going to be a nice driving day trips from London thread

 

[800 Driver]

As a cockney who loves Devon and Cornwall I can certainly understand some local resentment towards outsiders moving in. I’d love to move down that neck of the woods however I’m now thinking would I be doing the right thing?

I’ve read so many reports about the youngsters being forced out of places where they want to live because rent and property prices have shot up while their salaries haven’t. Of course tourism is a major revenue stream for the area so it’s a love hate thing I guess. But the rich second home owners renting their properties out making an utter fortune now as well as people deciding to move further away and work from home driving up prices has changed it even more so. However I don’t think it’s just the west now, seems the pretty parts of Wales, Yorkshire, Lakes etc are suffering the same issue.

Sorry I’ve gone off on a bit of a grumble…..

OP do you work for TOC that has a mixture of work? If so have you considered a move to another depot that has work that has less stops? I did this, didn’t have to move and the work is substantially better.

Moving somewhere isn't tourism and it also isn't equivalent to owning a second home. If you want to move to Cornwall and be bored sh*tless do it. People have been moving to London and pushing up house prices for millennia ....

 

[Astro_Orbiter]

Cockney is now the accent most often heard in and around Kernow these days and its only going to get much worse in coming years....
What gets me is the ignorance that Cornwall is considered by many to be a separate Celtic nation, however you say that to many expats and they look at you as if you are mad. No different really to Wales or Scotland , but in the mass public consciousness its just a nice part of England to retire to.....

What on earth are you talking about and what relevance does Cornwall being a County of England or a "seperate Celtic Nation" have to do with anything being discussed in this thread?

 

[godfreycomplex]

Hello

I’ve been driving for 5 years and want out of London. I love my job but inner London is starting to wear me down. Also stopping every 3 mins is a pain. So looking for more laid back more scenic driving. Thinking Cornwall etc. Don’t mind going into London then out again. Or even aboard has anyone moved country.

Depends what you like really

Sadly the issue with going abroad is A - a lot of the rights we had to live and work abroad have been snatched away from us lately and B - driving qualifications aren’t valid in other jurisdictions so you’d have to start again as a trainee, and in places that require visa sponsorship that’s fairly unlikely as train driving is a sought after job the world o’er so it may prove tricky. Not to put you off but it is something to consider

Have you thought about TPE? They seem to be recruiting fairly constantly, don’t stop that often and their depots are mostly in cities so it wouldn’t be too jarring a shift.

Admittedly I’m not best placed to comment as A - I’m not a driver and B - I started my railway career in an idyllic country locale then ran away to live and work in the big city which I will only be dragged away from at gunpoint , but to each their own.

Hope you find something you like

 

[Zontar]

Wales or Scotland your best bet

 

[4F89]

North Wales borders give you the best of everything, close to manc and liv for days out, work out of crewe or chester etc, beach on the doorstep, mountains. Its the best of both worlds.

 

[tlionhart]

Moving somewhere isn't tourism and it also isn't equivalent to owning a second home. If you want to move to Cornwall and be bored sh*tless do it. People have been moving to London and pushing up house prices for millennia ....

Totally agree! It’s not always buckets and spades down there. I prefer London for the nightlife, store availability/opening hours, later/earlier transport. The coast isn’t that far either from the city by road or rail.
Drivers whinge about branch line work in the Thames Valley, yet transfer to the SW because they want to drive on the branch lines. Baffles me! ‍
Horses for courses…

Cardiff looks like the next depot to be at…

 

[TristanGNER]

I've been waiting nearly 18 months for an interview with gwr , they definitely are not in a rush lol

Can I just ask which depot you have applied to?

 

[wobman]

North Wales borders give you the best of everything, close to manc and liv for days out, work out of crewe or chester etc, beach on the doorstep, mountains. Its the best of both worlds.

Shhhhh don't be telling everyone about the beauty of living close to N Wales

 

[4F89]

Shhhhh don't be telling everyone about the beauty of living close to N Wales

Ooopsy

 

[westcoaster]

I guess alot depends on your work content for you TOC.
Lots of nice places all over the country to drive from.

I dont mind suburban work stopping every couple of minutes, upto 120 times a day, but then again I enjoy cross london work from the home counties to Brighton.
Dont think I'd like intercity work 60 minutes plus between stops seems monotonous.

 

[GrimsbyPacer]

1st point, Northern Rail have the most diverse scenery of any operator, so would be a good move, everything from the Derbyshire Dales to the Cumberland Coast.

2nd point, Cornwall has been part of England since England was first united over a thousand years ago, and no group of people ever called themselves Celtic until the 19th Century.

I hope you find something that works for you.
Just wondering which London stations your trains run to? Maybe an operator on the other side of town might work in the short term?

 

[TristanGNER]

I've been waiting nearly 18 months for an interview with gwr , they definitely are not in a rush lol

I spoke to HR on 18th June and might have been able to help with your answer. I have been waiting a long time too (6 months) and I got my update from HR at GWR. Spoke to Janet (or Janice) and she was very helpful indeed. She's now setting up my medical screening.

 

[Class2ldn]

Well everytime I enquire with them I just get the same response that they are waiting for managers to become available to do an interview.
Can't be that long of a wait surely.
Pretty much forgotten about it now and actively looking elsewhere

 

[tiptoptaff]

Well everytime I enquire with them I just get the same response that they are waiting for managers to become available to do an interview.
Can't be that long of a wait surely.
Pretty much forgotten about it now and actively looking elsewhere

Which depot is this for? Send me a pm, might be able to help