Westbound exiting London on Friday nights...

[Pentoman]

Hello future neighbours.

So, I'm moving to London next month for the weekdays only. This means that on Fridays I would be joining the scrabble to leave and return to the country.

The train is an option for this, but a little dry . I rather fancy a good drive to spice things up after a week couped up in the city. Therefore can anyone tell me what the traffic may be like from 5pm onwards?

The key info you need is that I am hoping to live in Earls Court and would be heading out West on the A4/M4, so in theory I haven't got far to go. But, I was told the a4 flyover becomes a standstill on Fridays. I have driven this route twice on Saturday mid-mornings and, while slow, I could still live with it. Is Friday night comparable to Saturday mid-morning or much worse?

Now, creative alternatives time... I have considered parking the car somewhere secure on the outskirts and getting the train out there, thus skipping the worst of the city traffic; Or, I could just rent a car from, for example, Heathrow and get out to Heathrow on the tube which also saves the cost of parking, maintaining and insuring; And I even spoke to some aviation companies about flying but it was jolly expensive even when you crammed the aircraft full of people (unsurprising, but it was worth a go). Nothing else comes to mind but does anyone have other creative alternatives for leaving London that don't involve 2.5 hours on the train - of which I am already sick?

Edited by Pentoman on Monday 16th January 13:56

[z4chris99]

it's not that bad from there outward. wouldn't worry about it too much, more traffic than normal but not a standstill once you get on m4

[Robatr0n]

The A4 can be abit of a nightmare at that sort of time, it's quite hit and miss really.

[CraigVmax]

i occasionally have been known to go a3, m25 then m4 to avoid traffic, further in distance but timewise it can work.

[Yanto]

Hammersmith flyover down to one lane each way for about another 3 months. Prob not helpful on Fri eve....

[Gruber]

Robatr0n said:

The A4 can be abit of a nightmare at that sort of time, it's quite hit and miss really.

This.

Generally pretty bloody slow (and much, much worse than a Saturday) and it only takes ones little shunt or breakdown on the elevated section to make it worse still.

However... if you hang around in London until later in the evening, and then head out, it flows much better. If we're doing that journey on a Friday, we tend to amble home, have some dinner, load up the car and hit the road about 8.30ish, by which time it's usually fine.

Of course, with the H'smith flyover closed / part-closed for an unknown period of time, it isn't going to be any easier.

[ThatPhilBrettGuy]

As others have said, I've found that if the traffic on the route is light, it's only because it's buggered somewhere else and that traffic can't get there!

[Pentoman]

Thanks all. The suggestion of waiting to later is a fine one.
It Seems like my Earl's court accommodation might be falling through. Any good suggestions for learning about London & the various places to live? And does Anyone have a place to rent <£1000?

[CraigVmax]

where do you need to be/get to? any friends here that you'd want to be near?

[Pentoman]

Easy access to vauxhall would be excellent. Have friends in Barnes. Easy access to paddington also useful if I do end up on the train, but not a deal breaker.
Currently looking at Studio flats in the 700/month region. I really fancy a serviced apartment type of affair (just because it seems very convenient and novel), but can't find them for under £2000/month!

[Gruber]

Is Vauxhall where you'll be working?

In my book, an easy commute to work is near the top of the list for location planning in London.

You could look at Wandsworth / Putney area: good overland train links to Vauxhall and Barnes, near the A3 to escape town, etc. But not so good for getting to Paddington.

And you could also consider renting a room Mon-Fri. I understand it's becoming increasingly popular to rent out one's spare room Mon-Fri and then get the house to yourself over the weekend. Your money might go further than a full time studio rental.

[eastsider]

Try http://www.mondaytofriday.com/ for a room weekdays only. £1000 is a massive budget for that. I used to rent my spare room that way (east end), for £450 a month to a guy from Leeds (IT contractor) he got a nice place (ie not hotel, they wear thin pretty quick and cost), walking distance to his job, and it suited me perfect as I had my place to myself at the weekend. He turned up Monday evening and left Thursday morning (Worked from home friday). Absolute winner.

[TorqueWench]

I travel from London to the South Coast most Fridays. I tend to get the train these days as the drive from Southwark to Sunbury via Earls Court takes over an hour on a Friday evening. And then its atleast an hour from there to Bournemouth.
By the time Ive put up with Londoners bad driving Im pretty pissed off.

The train is 1 hour 50 minutes, and if booked far enough in advance is half the price of taking the car