To ask Londoners their advice on this commute?

[LumpenMonkee]

I am moving house soon and starting a new job too at the same time.

House is just over a mile away from Turnpike Lane tube station and just under a mile from Hornsey rail. Job is near Holborn Viaduct (Chancery Lane/Holborn/Farringdon all nearby).

This is my first time commuting in London... I am just wondering how realistic it sounds to walk over a mile to the tube every morning, take tube to Holborn then walk? So about 2 miles, 4 miles a day in total. Buses are available but I'm worried they'll be packed and I like fresh air in the morning anyway. I'm fairly fit and training for a 15k so the exercise will do me good.

[hooliodancer]

I would say that is the perfect commute. I always walk if I can when I get off at Waterloo (I work at lots of different places) as it's often quicker than getting on a bus, and no waiting around.

[rollinghedgehog]

That sounds very do-able. I live and work on opposite sides of London (currently job hunting for something more central!) and I walk 1 mile, take the tube for 10mins, then the train for 40mins and walk another mile. I wear block high heels most days (shoes in the summer and boots in the winter) and have my Barbour/winter coat, hat and brolly for rainy days. It very rarely snows. I often find waiting in the rain for a bus more annoying than walking in the rain.

[StepCatsmother]

Until last year (when I moved out of London), this was my exact commute.

It's fine, except when there are problems on the Piccadilly Line (which there are, fairly often) as your alternative options for getting into town are limited and, when the Tube is off, packed full. If you have the option to work from home on those days, it makes life so much easier.

The commute itself is fine though and as others have said, it's fairly straightforward for a London commute. I did it pretty much every day for 8 years and it was hassle-free for the most part.

[MackerelOfFact]

Scooter is a great suggestion- I see so many people on their scooters now!

Really?! I walk up Kingsway/High Holborn about 4 times a day and don't think I've ever seen a commuter on a scooter.... it would be absolute fucking carnage IMO!

[EmpressOfTheVaginaDentata]

Scooting only works if the pavements aren't too busy though.

[MouseholeCat]

Scooter is a great suggestion- I see so many people on their scooters now!

Otherwise, definitely look into cycling. I thought I wouldn't be confident enough to do my commute by bike because of similarly busy roads, but picked it up really quickly. Free cycle safety training helped too.

[blueskyinmarch]

My DD walks from Willesden Green to Notting Hill every day. Takes her 45 minutes each way but she says that's about the same time as the bus takes because of the traffic. She wears trainers to walk and takes spare trousers if it rains. Her Fitbit step count is immense!

[Alconleigh]

I walk 40 mins each way to and from work, through central London. Everyone I know is so jealous of this. Treasure the walking OP, it is so much more pleasant than every other option in London.

[ChickyDuck]

I walk 2 or so miles to work and the same back every day. I love it! I wear sensible shoes, have a large sturdy umbrella, a comfy cross body bag and a selection of warm/waterproof coats so I am always prepared for the weather! And it means even if I fail to do my evening run I have still had an hour+ of exercise each day.

[UnikittyInHerBusinessSuit]

And get the BBC Radio app on your phone, to download hours and hours of fabulous drama, comedy and music.

[Artandco]

If your getting those times from google it always overestimates imo ( or based on very slow walkers). So 16 min walk on Google, is more like 10 mins in real life. So take 5 mins off both ends at least.

A mile is about 15 mins walking.

Take an umbrella when it rains , get a warm coat for winter, and some decent waterproof leather boots to walk in dry.

[dynevoran]

I second the scooter suggestion. I have one and it turns a 10 min walk into a 2 min scooter. Saves so much time and folds for the tube.

[Ifailed]

Walk, tube, walk. The fewer changes the better, less chances of being held up. Forget about buses, if it's raining you'll get wetter hanging around waiting for one with space to get on than if you walked. If there's a tube strike, the whole trip is also walk-able, about 1.5 hrs.

[ShelaghTurner]

God I miss working in London

[LaPampa]

I do a similar commute. Hornsey to Moorgate and then circle line to Farringdon then walk. Or bus to FP, change Kings X to Farringdon. There are several routes - I'd try them all out.

Only thing I would say about Turnpike Lane is it is Zone 3 whereas if you get bus to FP it is zone 2 so cheaper if you get a weekly travel card. I abandoned oyster in favour of conctactless and it caps every week anyway without all those annoying top ups.

[roasted]

It's an easy commute. Apart from when the Piccadilly Line goes down or there's a strike and it all goes to pot. You won't get on a bus at Turnpike Lane, it will be full after it leaves Wood Green.

[stopfuckingshoutingatme]

And what parka said - tube it

[stopfuckingshoutingatme]

Do it ! Walking better than a stinky bus

[Parka]

I do exactly the same - I'm not far from you and walk about a mile to Finsbury Park and then get the tube. I just do it every day, rain or shine, helped by the fact that the alternative is a nearer but much busier train station. It's a great start to the day in my view, but then I've got quite a nice green route which helps!

Those Hornsey trains are PACKED at rush hour. Tubes are too, but there are more of them. Depends what time you start work of course.

[SabineUndine]

I agre with Inshock. You will quickly come to value the walking you get to do each day, really helps you wake up then wind down again.

[Lorelei76]

Would it be quicker to go from Hornsey to Moorgate, then either bus or walk from there? Depends how close you are to Honsey I guess.

[thisisafakename]

Definitely doable and you will be clocking up your 10k steps a day as well. And so much nicer than being crammed into someone's armpit on the bus.

[tangerino]

Or change at Kings Cross and go to Farringdon? Hard to say whether that's quicker as don't know exactly where you're working.

[Wigeon]

Just cycle to the tube? I cycle about a mile to my train station and you'd be surprised at how infrequently you actually get properly wet - almost never. And it doesn't matter on the way home because you just get changed when you get in. I have waterproof trousers for showery days. For proper downpours (literally almost never in the 5-10 mins I'm on the bike) you can always walk with an umbrella. In the winter, I just wear a thin hat under my helmet, and gloves.

[BigGreenOlives]

Commutes like this are why Londoners are thinner than most of the country - it's much easier to involve walking in your daily life when there's good public transport.