Whittlesford Parkway to Euston Square

[ictl]

I will be commuting from Whittlesford Parkway to Euston Square for a year. I would need to arrive at Euston Square by around 8.45 in the morning Mon-Fri (I can come in a little later some days, but easiest to say this for now). Times going back to Whittlesford would vary day-to-day but I would probably leave London after 5.30 or 6pm. I can either go:

(1) Whittlesford -> London Liv St -> Euston Square (via tube); or
(2) Whittlesford -> Cambridge -> London Kings X -> Euston Square (~10 min walk)

If I get an annual ticket for Cambridge -> London Terminals (Any permitted route) costing £4536, I can use both routes so I don't need to buy an additional ticket if either the Kings X line or the Liv St line have problems (and I have my oyster card if I need to go via Liv St. It has a railcard loaded onto it but I don't think it'll have much effect since I would need to travel in morning peak).

Annual tickets for Whittlesford -> London Terminals (Greater Anglia only) and Cambridge -> London Terminals (Greater Anglia only) are the same price (£4160) so if I go for route 1 I would go for the latter ticket. If Greater Anglia has a line problem towards London but I can still get to Cambridge I would need to buy a Cambridge -> Kings X ticket (which would be quite expensive if it's morning peak, though if I'm lucky "GA only" tickets may be accepted on the Kings X route if there's a serious problem with the GA line).

Getting a Zones 1-6 "add-on" (£5392 Greater Anglia only, £5772 any permitted route) will probably be more expensive than two Zone 1 oyster singles 5 days a week for a year so I'm not sure it's worth getting that.

The Circle/Hammersmith/Metropolitan line platform at Liv St is pretty much just opposite the Liv St mainline terminus so there's little walking involved for route 1.

I think both routes take about the same time but there's more waiting involved in the Kings X one (faster trains make up the time waiting).

In the mornings, I would probably take the 07:00 or 07:25 Whittlesford -> arrive 08:20 or 08:25 Liv St for route 1, or 07:12 Whittlesford -> arrive 07:26 Cambridge then 07:45 Cambridge -> arrive 08:38 Kings X for route 2.

I'm guessing both trains will be completely full. The Kings X train is probably more popular but if I'm arriving into Cambridge a lot earlier I might be able to grab a seat if the 07:45 starts off at Cambridge (if it's coming from, say Kings Lynn, then probably not!)

It seems that the Kings X route is cheaper overall but the Liv St route is more convenient.

Money is not that much of an issue (for now) but I prefer not to spend more than I need, so the main problem is whether the convenience of the Liv St route outweighs the higher overall price and inflexible ticket.

I am planning on trying out both routes for a week to see how I feel about them before buying a season/annual ticket. Is there anything I haven't considered? What would you recommend I choose? Any suggestions welcome.

 

[306024]

No idea about fares, but would Whittlesford - Tottenham Hale - Euston then walk be quickest, assuming the walk bit is possible. May be worth a try just to see how busy the Victoria line is.

 

[ictl]

No idea about fares, but would Whittlesford - Tottenham Hale - Euston then walk be quickest, assuming the walk bit is possible. May be worth a try just to see how busy the Victoria line is.

Hadn't thought of that. I'll give it a go. It's more expensive than the other two routes though.

Annual ticket for Whittlesford -> Tottenham Hale is £3840 (Cambridge -> Tottenham Hale is the same price as Cambridge -> Liv St)

Annual Zones 1-3 travelcard is £1472 on oyster or £1028 on 18+ oyster.

 

[Hadders]

Worth bearing in mind that a walk from Kings Cross to Euston Square is around 15 minutes so if you take the route into Kings Cross you might be able to get away with a 'London Terminals' ticket rather than a travelcard.

If you do this I'd have an Oyster card with some pay as you go credit (or a contactless card) to use on days when it's raining.

 

[jopsuk]

If I have it correct, the 0655 (0647 from Cambridge), 0725 (0717 from Cambridge) and 0755 (0747 from Cambridge- I get this often to WLF!) are the 12-carriage Class 379 services. These leave Cambridge pretty empty (at least, the last of them does!) and are equipped with power sockets, wifi and air conditioning. They run fast from Bishops Stortford (where they get busy) to Tottenham Hale.
The other Liverpool Street services use Class 317, in all four internal configurations.

Going via Cambridge puts you on Great Northern class 365 services, which have none of the modern amenities listed and can be full-and-standing, even the 12 car ones, at Cambridge.

So, pick the right service at Whittlesford (the 0655, 0725 and 0755) for a better journey!

 

[306024]

If I have it correct, the 0655 (0647 from Cambridge), 0725 (0717 from Cambridge) and 0755 (0747 from Cambridge- I get this often to WLF!) are the 12-carriage Class 379 services.

You do

For the return journey the 17.07, 17.37 and 18.07 from Liverpool St (which all call Tottenham Hale) are the best ones to aim for, these are the return workings of the 12 car class 379s.

 

[maniacmartin]

Whittlesford to London Kings Cross via Cambridge is not a permitted route, so you would need a Cambridge - London season to do this.

If you have the Cambridge ticket, it is valid from Finsbury Park to London Kings Cross, and also Finsbury Park to Moorgate. There is is interavailability with some tube lines here, so you could do:
Whittlesford to Tottenham Hale. Victoria Tube to Finsbury Park on Z2-3 season, then continue on Victoria line tube to Kings Cross on interavailable route. Then from Kings Cross , its a short walk to Euston Square.
This means you can use a Cambridge - London Terminals ticket, and a Z2-3 travelcard and don't need a costly Z1 travelcard.

 

[ictl]

Thanks to everyone who's replied. I've now tried both routes several times and have decided for now on a three-monthly season Cambridge -> London Terminals (Any permitted route) with oyster pay as you go if needed. I now take the Great Nothern route in the mornings, and either route in the evenings depending on when I finish.

If I have it correct, the 0655 (0647 from Cambridge), 0725 (0717 from Cambridge) and 0755 (0747 from Cambridge- I get this often to WLF!) are the 12-carriage Class 379 services. These leave Cambridge pretty empty (at least, the last of them does!) and are equipped with power sockets, wifi and air conditioning. They run fast from Bishops Stortford (where they get busy) to Tottenham Hale.
The other Liverpool Street services use Class 317, in all four internal configurations.

Going via Cambridge puts you on Great Northern class 365 services, which have none of the modern amenities listed and can be full-and-standing, even the 12 car ones, at Cambridge.

So, pick the right service at Whittlesford (the 0655, 0725 and 0755) for a better journey!

Thanks for the info, the 379s are indeed very nice! The 0725 from Whittlesford isn't full but normally doesn't have any window seats available.

The 0745 from Cambridge to Kings X has 12 coaches - 8 originate from Cambridge (doors open at ~0735 after the 0733 to Kings Lynn arrives) and 4 come from Kings Lynn (arriving 0740). By getting the 0712 Whittlesford to Cambridge, arriving 0726, I always get a window seat.

In the mornings, I normally just have a nap (!!) rather than work/read so the Great Northern route works out fine. (Having said that, it seems to almost always arrive late at Kings X.)

You do

For the return journey the 17.07, 17.37 and 18.07 from Liverpool St (which all call Tottenham Hale) are the best ones to aim for, these are the return workings of the 12 car class 379s.

Getting the 1737 can sometimes be a bit of a push for me (normally just about miss it and have to get the 1743) and I normally don't get a seat unless I arrive when the actual train arrives into Liv St, so it's not practical for me to do any work whilst on the train (or at least until Bishops Stortford for the 1737 / Broxbourne for the 1743).

Whittlesford to London Kings Cross via Cambridge is not a permitted route, so you would need a Cambridge - London season to do this.

If you have the Cambridge ticket, it is valid from Finsbury Park to London Kings Cross, and also Finsbury Park to Moorgate. There is is interavailability with some tube lines here, so you could do:
Whittlesford to Tottenham Hale. Victoria Tube to Finsbury Park on Z2-3 season, then continue on Victoria line tube to Kings Cross on interavailable route. Then from Kings Cross , its a short walk to Euston Square.
This means you can use a Cambridge - London Terminals ticket, and a Z2-3 travelcard and don't need a costly Z1 travelcard.

I would need a London Terminals (Any permitted route) to do this though (can't do this with a discounted Greater Anglia only season), so a Z2-3 travelcard would be an additional cost on top of the more expensive ticket.

Another question: Is a Cambridge -> Boundary Zone 3 season ticket available? If so, is it available as "Any permitted route" and "Greater Anglia only" types and what would a three month season of these cost? I'd like to explore the possibility of Cambridge -> Boundary Zone 3 (Greater Anglia only) with Zones 1-3 travelcard on oyster.

 

[dzug2]

AFAIK Boundary zone tickets are only issued for single or return journeys, not seasons

 

[306024]

Thanks to everyone who's replied..... .

Glad you've worked out what is best for you, and for taking the time to say thank you, pleased to see manners are not dead after all

 

[ictl]

An update:

Since January, my travel plans have changed a little, since I have to be in by 9 am on only a couple of days per week (the other days are more flexible). I have therefore been able to test out some other routes, especially those via Tottenham Hale. (I have gone for another 3-month Cambridge to London Terminals, Any Permitted.)

Whittlesford to Tottenham to Euston is the quickest route out of the ones I've tested. I have however noticed that there are Oyster validators on the platform at Highbury and Islington (Zone 2). I have therefore been able to test out maniacmartin's suggestion without getting a travelcard by touching in at Tottenham Hale LU using Oyster, getting off the Victoria line train at Highbury and touching out, going back onto the train and exiting Kings X LU using the paper season ticket (the ticket does indeed open the barriers at the LU station as well as the mainline one). This works out cheaper than Liv St to Euston Square and even a Z2-3 travelcard (I don't always go via Tottenham Hale; I still go via Cambridge sometimes). This doesn't work during the morning rush hour (0700 to 0825 from Whittlesford) since there are a lot of people on the platform at Highbury changing from GN to the Victoria line, so getting back on the train is pretty much impossible. I can avoid the morning rush by getting the 0655 from Whittlesford, and this is now my preferred train to get if I need to be in by 9. Evening rush hour is usually fine.

I have travelled to London a couple of times at the weekend (normally I do not need to do so) and found that the Oyster validators at Highbury are deactivated, presumably since GN doesn't serve it at weekends. I have since discovered validators at Finsbury Park up the stairs from the platform which do work at weekends.