Traveling to London from Midlands with infant: Car or public transport?

[Justecelaoui]

It'll be the first time we travel with our 3 months old, it's a for a medical appointment so a round trip. I think that going by car will be more practical, DH thinks public transport is better.

YABU: car

YANBU: public transport

@Laiste

Well i'd do car. Cool, comfortable and you can carry as much baby stuff as you need. But then i'm a confident driver and grew up/learned to drive in London. I live in the midlands now and it's an hour and a half down the M40 to get to DHs parents in London.

Has anyone said they were nervous about driving in central London?

I usually drive everywhere but with a 3 month old, I'd get the train and taxis either end. Much less stressful and a lot cheaper when you take the congestion charge and parking costs into account

Train then you’re not worried about parking.

Train without question.

I live in the Midlands. The train to Euston is less than an hour, not expensive, and not crowded. Definitely easier. (And better for the environment although when your child is in need of medical attention, the state of the planet is not really a priority.) I hope the appointment goes well.

I don’t know why people are terrified of parking in London. It’s fairly easy to find long stay parking, it can just be expensive hence people try and avoid day to day. But it’s probably still way cheaper than x2 train tickets.

Depends on which hospital.

If it's for your little one and the appointment is at Great Ormond Street, then personally, I'd train it and walk from Euston to GOSH. (approx 20 minutes). Google maps puts the journey from my house to GOSH at well over 3 hours each way. The train is 1 1/2 hours...

Parking can get fruity around those parts and there is also the congestion charge. The hospital website www.gosh.nhs.uk/your-hospital-visit/travelling-gosh/ is worth a look.

The only thing I'd say as a negative about the train is that costs can ramp up in peak times or if you need a more open ticket.

But it is fairly easy to kill time in London I'll give it that.

Is the appointment in central London? If so, definitely use public transport. Driving, parking and the congestion charge together make driving in central London a logistical nightmare.

I'm not a parent, but as suggested a sling maybe a good idea for the baby. If you do bring a buggy, many tube stations now have step free access. If not us Londoners are usually pretty good at helping lift buggies up stairs.....ive yet to see a mother struggle as there is always a willing volunteer to help.

Thanks for all the replies.

Appointment is relatively quick, and yes right in Central London, not far from Moorfields Eye hospital. I've read all replies, and still not convinced about public transport. Although very convenient for many, I'm quite uneasy about these busy places, even more so now with covid. Even if we adults wear masks, you can't put one on a 3 months old. A lot mentioned parking issues, booking a spot close by was actually straightforward (just park website). I'm more concerned about traffic, but we'll leave very early and might even have time to have a bit of a walk around!

The baby won't need a face mask! Apart from anything else, they don't really protect the wearer, they're to stop those with it spreading it, and a 3 month baby is highly unlikely to have it to spread.

Moorfields is actually only on the border of the congestion zone so no need to pay for that if you do drive. Angel (Islington) close by for lunch/shopping. If I were you I’d check the predicted journey time on Waze app - you can input the day/time you will be travelling for a reasonably accurate estimate - and decide from that.

@NLondondiva thanks for the app, I've never heard of it!

Seriously don't drive.

You will get stuck in traffic and you will have to negotiate some tricky London road layouts. Not to mention congestion charges and parking charges. Also if you do get stuck in traffic there's no where to stop to change or feed baby.

Use a sling and that way baby is close to you and facing you.

They have done loads of tests and not found any covid on surfaces on transport.

The train will be a lot less stressful for all involved. Believe me!

If it were me I would drive but I’ve driven to London a lot from the midlands. Park at Cockfosters and get the tube down.

I don’t think driving in London is that bad. I’ve driven in London once or twice and while it’s more complicated than Birmingham - it’s not exactly awful. Especially if you have a satnav as it’ll tell you which lane to get into at busy roundabouts and junctions!

Despite that, I would still recommend the train. You can get a group save ticket if there are three of you travelling and it’s so much more relaxing. The train drops you off in the heart of London and you can easily walk to the hospital if you don’t feel comfortable on the tube or taxi. I shared the same concerns about the virus on public transport however it’s much quieter now than what it used to be. It’ll be so long in the car and the train is so lovely and comfortable. The train is overall less hassle and it’s a nice experience. Plus you can visit the sights after and don’t have to worry about rush hour!

Where in the Midlands do you live? I live in Dorridge and I often drive to Birmingham International station to park my car there and get the train from there. It takes little over an hour from there to Euston. It saves mixing with others at Birmingham New Street or any other busy station (Coventry/Rugby) and as the airport won’t be busy - you definitely won’t mix with many there.

It will be much p, much faster to get the train. As a pp said, it's only an hour from Birmingham international to Euston and then it's only a couple of stops to Old Street. It will take you at least 2.5 hours in the car and that's excluding stops and rush hour traffic. If you get stuck in a traffic jam, you won't be able to get the baby out of its car seat either.

I’d be the same as you and usually choose the car, especially in Covid times... but a few hours in the car is going to require a few stops to get baby out of the seat, and that’s going to make a long journey even longer... so that alone would swing the train for me.

@Spidey66

The baby won't need a face mask! Apart from anything else, they don't really protect the wearer, they're to stop those with it spreading it, and a 3 month baby is highly unlikely to have it to spread.

This ^ I can't believe we are over a year into the pandemic and people still don't understand that masks do not protect the wearer!

Best of luck with the appointment OP, I hope it goes well.