Cambridge-London commute

Fred Wang · 4 Apr 2024

I will start commuting between Cambridge and London shortly. I was wondering if there is any advice.

When does the train become crowded on a normal workday morning?
If I take the 0709 train, will I get a seat? If not, will a first-class ticket guarantee a seat?
If there’s disruption like engineering works or strikes, and I still have to commute, at what time should I get to the station?

Thank you!

And forgive me if any of the questions sound silly. (I am new to the UK.)

RailUK Forums

Mcv378 · 5 Apr 2024

Welcome to the Official source for UK trains | National Rail

You've found the gateway to Britain's national rail network. The portal to rail travel, including train times information, fares enquiries; promotions; and ticket info.

www.nationalrail.co.uk

This website will help you plan your journey.

Engineering works and strikes will vary but are always advertised in advance

bcarmicle · 5 Apr 2024

https://timetables.greatnorthernrail.com/GN/#/timetables/2365/Table A shows how busy each train is typically; the key shows that you should be able to get a seat on a train if the time has a yellow or green background. The 0709 looks quite bad for getting a seat; the 0653 however looks good and gets you into London at around the same time.

riceuten · 5 Apr 2024

From personal experience further down the line, the 0723 is standing room only by the time it gets to Hitchin, though I believe that (provided you get there early enough) there are seats available at CBG. The 0709 is difficult for getting a seat because it's come all the way from Kings Lynn.

norbitonflyer · 5 Apr 2024

Note that if there are problems on the GN route to Kings Cross, there are also trains to Liverpool Street. Different line and different operator, so neither engineering works nor operator-specific issues are likely to knock out both routes simultaneously

Magdalia · 5 Apr 2024

Fred Wang said:
will start commuting between Cambridge and London shortly. I was wondering if there is any advice. When does the train become crowded in a normal morning? If I take the 7am train, will I get a seat? If not, will a first-class ticket guarantee a seat? It there’s disruption like engineering work and strikes and I still have to commute, at what time should I get to the station? Thank you! And forgive me if any of the questions sound silly. I am new to the UK.

It is a long time since I commuted, but a lot of the principles remain the same.

If you place high priority on sitting down, and trains are very busy, then try to get on at the station where the train starts, and get there in enough time to get on the train as soon as it is available to passengers. Going towards London in the morning that might make for a slightly slower journey because the trains that start at Cambridge stop at more stations on the way. Coming home it adds a bit of time too because turning up at Kings Cross just before the trains are due to go will probably mean that all of the seats are already taken.

Much may also depend on exactly where you are commuting to in London, unless it is within walking distance of Kings Cross and St Pancras.

bcarmicle said:
https://timetables.greatnorthernrail.com/GN/#/timetables/2365/Table A shows how busy each train is typically; the key shows that you should be able to get a seat on a train if the time has a yellow or green background. The 0709 looks quite bad for getting a seat; the 0653 however looks good and gets you into London at around the same time.

This is fantastic. Thanks for the link.

norbitonflyer said:
Note that if there are problems on the GN route to Kings Cross, there are also trains to Liverpool Street. Different line and different operator, so neither engineering works nor operator-specific issues are likely to knock out both routes simultaneously

That's not entirely correct, though it is an option for some disruptions. All engineering work relating to the new Cambridge South station knocks out both lines. Yesterday a lightning strike in Cambridge knocked out the signals and disrupted both routes in the middle of the morning peak.

pelli · 5 Apr 2024

Where is your final destination in London? This will determine whether King's Cross/St Pancras or Liverpool Street are viable options, as well as whether you might want to take a Thameslink train and stay on past St Pancras.

riceuten said:
The 0709 is difficult for getting a seat because it's come all the way from Kings Lynn.

Looking at Realtimetrains on a random weekday in the future, it appears that the 0709 train attaches a portion at Cambridge, which is scheduled to come in empty at 0648, so you should have a good chance at a seat if you arrive early enough. Can someone with local knowledge reveal whether the empty portion is usually unlocked before the other portion arrives (allowing people to board early and wait in comfort) or whether it is kept locked until the other portion has attached (requiring people to queue up outside in the cold)?

The 0653 starts at Cambridge, arriving at 0638 in service from King's Cross. I believe you can board as soon as it arrives, and it supposedly has plenty of seats available. (Similarly for the other Thameslink trains every 30 minutes.)

Do you want to have a proper table, a fold-down seatback (airline-style) table, or are you happy with just the seat and no table at all? On a class 387 (e.g. the fast Great Northern trains like the 0709), I believe almost every seat has some sort of table, while your best bet to get a proper table is the cluster of 4 tables (16 seats) under the pantograph in the middle of the train, but the drawback is you have to put up with a few loud bangs during the journey. On a class 700 (e.g. the Thameslink trains like the 0653), the only proper tables are in the first-class sections, 22 seats at the very front of the train for which you need a first-class ticket, and 22 at the very back of the train where you only need a standard-class ticket due to that section being permanently declassified (so you might need to turn up early to bag one of those), while I believe in standard class some trains have seatback tables and some have no tables at all.

MikeWM · 5 Apr 2024

bcarmicle said:
https://timetables.greatnorthernrail.com/GN/#/timetables/2365/Table A shows how busy each train is typically; the key shows that you should be able to get a seat on a train if the time has a yellow or green background.

I'd say it is a good guide to trends (which trains are busier than others), but I'm not sure about the accuracy of the specifics of it (ie. whether you'll get a seat). I get the 1018 from Ely fairly regularly and, while it is a busy train, it certainly isn't as bad as 'standing room only' from Ely or 'even standing space limited' from Waterbeach on Tuesdays to Thursdays, as indicated here.

(In any event the key needs updating as it says 'We recommend you travel on trains shown as "many seats available", where possible, to remain socially distanced.' which seems a *little* bit out-of-date!)

--

pelli said:
Looking at Realtimetrains on a random weekday in the future, it appears that the 0709 train attaches a portion at Cambridge, which is scheduled to come in empty at 0648, so you should have a good chance at a seat if you arrive early enough. Can someone with local knowledge reveal whether the empty portion is usually unlocked before the other portion arrives (allowing people to board early and wait in comfort) or whether it is kept locked until the other portion has attached (requiring people to queue up outside in the cold)?

I haven't got a train that early from Cambridge in a while

but certainly later in the day it has always been usual practice to have the 'waiting to couple up' portion open and available when in the platform.

arb · 5 Apr 2024

I would definitely take the colouring on that timetable with a pinch of salt. My most commonly used train nowadays is the 09:48 from Ely to Cambridge. As we depart Ely, there are only ever a few other people in my carriage maximum, regardless of the day of the week (it does fill up significantly from Cambridge North). But they've only given it the dark green colour ("usually many seats available") on Mon/Wed/Fri. On Tuesday they claim it's light green ("plenty of seats") and Thursday yellow ("some seats"). Whilst those definitions are obviously fairly subjective themselves, in my experience this train should be dark green at Ely every day of the week.

Fred Wang · 5 Apr 2024

Mcv378 said:
Welcome to the Official source for UK trains | National Rail

You've found the gateway to Britain's national rail network. The portal to rail travel, including train times information, fares enquiries; promotions; and ticket info.

www.nationalrail.co.uk

This website will help you plan your journey.

Engineering works and strikes will vary but are always advertised in advance

Thank you for the info. I used to purchase tickets from the mobile app Trainline. It's good to know there's an official website.

bcarmicle said:
https://timetables.greatnorthernrail.com/GN/#/timetables/2365/Table A shows how busy each train is typically; the key shows that you should be able to get a seat on a train if the time has a yellow or green background. The 0709 looks quite bad for getting a seat; the 0653 however looks good and gets you into London at around the same time.

Thank you for the link, which is very useful!

riceuten said:
From personal experience further down the line, the 0723 is standing room only by the time it gets to Hitchin, though I believe that (provided you get there early enough) there are seats available at CBG. The 0709 is difficult for getting a seat because it's come all the way from Kings Lynn.

Thank you for sharing your experience. I guess the 0653 or 0657 trains suit me better.

norbitonflyer said:
Note that if there are problems on the GN route to Kings Cross, there are also trains to Liverpool Street. Different line and different operator, so neither engineering works nor operator-specific issues are likely to knock out both routes simultaneously

Thank you! Yes, Liverpool Street is definitely an option. It's just I have to take a bus for another 30 min from there to my workplace. And it only takes a ten-min walk.

Magdalia said:
It is a long time since I commuted, but a lot of the principles remain the same.

If you place high priority on sitting down, and trains are very busy, then try to get on at the station where the train starts, and get there in enough time to get on the train as soon as it is available to passengers. Going towards London in the morning that might make for a slightly slower journey because the trains that start at Cambridge stop at more stations on the way. Coming home it adds a bit of time too because turning up at Kings Cross just before the trains are due to go will probably mean that all of the seats are already taken.

Much may also depend on exactly where you are commuting to in London, unless it is within walking distance of Kings Cross and St Pancras.

This is fantastic. Thanks for the link.

That's not entirely correct, though it is an option for some disruptions. All engineering work relating to the new Cambridge South station knocks out both lines. Yesterday a lightning strike in Cambridge knocked out the signals and disrupted both routes in the middle of the morning peak.

Thank you for pointing out that I need to get on the train as soon as it is available to passengers. I used to arrive at the train station just on time. And yes, my workplace is about 10-min walking distance from Kings Cross.

pelli said:
Where is your final destination in London? This will determine whether King's Cross/St Pancras or Liverpool Street are viable options, as well as whether you might want to take a Thameslink train and stay on past St Pancras.

Looking at Realtimetrains on a random weekday in the future, it appears that the 0709 train attaches a portion at Cambridge, which is scheduled to come in empty at 0648, so you should have a good chance at a seat if you arrive early enough. Can someone with local knowledge reveal whether the empty portion is usually unlocked before the other portion arrives (allowing people to board early and wait in comfort) or whether it is kept locked until the other portion has attached (requiring people to queue up outside in the cold)?

The 0653 starts at Cambridge, arriving at 0638 in service from King's Cross. I believe you can board as soon as it arrives, and it supposedly has plenty of seats available. (Similarly for the other Thameslink trains every 30 minutes.)

Do you want to have a proper table, a fold-down seatback (airline-style) table, or are you happy with just the seat and no table at all? On a class 387 (e.g. the fast Great Northern trains like the 0709), I believe almost every seat has some sort of table, while your best bet to get a proper table is the cluster of 4 tables (16 seats) under the pantograph in the middle of the train, but the drawback is you have to put up with a few loud bangs during the journey. On a class 700 (e.g. the Thameslink trains like the 0653), the only proper tables are in the first-class sections, 22 seats at the very front of the train for which you need a first-class ticket, and 22 at the very back of the train where you only need a standard-class ticket due to that section being permanently declassified (so you might need to turn up early to bag one of those), while I believe in standard class some trains have seatback tables and some have no tables at all.

Thank you for your info! The link you provided is illuminating! May I know how you got to know when the additional portion arrive? From the link you provided, I can only see "Service gains coaches here". Thank you!

MikeWM said:
I'd say it is a good guide to trends (which trains are busier than others), but I'm not sure about the accuracy of the specifics of it (ie. whether you'll get a seat). I get the 1018 from Ely fairly regularly and, while it is a busy train, it certainly isn't as bad as 'standing room only' from Ely or 'even standing space limited' from Waterbeach on Tuesdays to Thursdays, as indicated here.

(In any event the key needs updating as it says 'We recommend you travel on trains shown as "many seats available", where possible, to remain socially distanced.' which seems a *little* bit out-of-date!)

--

I haven't got a train that early from Cambridge in a while but certainly later in the day it has always been usual practice to have the 'waiting to couple up' portion open and available when in the platform.

Thank you for the info! It's good to know I may be able to get on the additional portion while it is waiting to be coupled.

arb said:
I would definitely take the colouring on that timetable with a pinch of salt. My most commonly used train nowadays is the 09:48 from Ely to Cambridge. As we depart Ely, there are only ever a few other people in my carriage maximum, regardless of the day of the week (it does fill up significantly from Cambridge North). But they've only given it the dark green colour ("usually many seats available") on Mon/Wed/Fri. On Tuesday they claim it's light green ("plenty of seats") and Thursday yellow ("some seats"). Whilst those definitions are obviously fairly subjective themselves, in my experience this train should be dark green at Ely every day of the week.

Thank you for the info!

LickeyIncliner · 5 Apr 2024

Magdalia said:
If you place high priority on sitting down, and trains are very busy, then try to get on at the station where the train starts...

Another option, depending where you're living in Cambridge, is to board at Cambridge North. At least some people will get out at Cambridge and you can bag one of their seats before the Cambridge hordes get in the doors.

Mcv378 · 5 Apr 2024

Fred Wang said:
Thank you for the info. I used to purchase tickets from the mobile app Trainline. It's good to know there's an official website.

Thank you for the link, which is very useful!

Thank you for sharing your experience. I guess the 0653 or 0657 trains suit me better.

Thank you! Yes, Liverpool Street is definitely an option. It's just I have to take a bus for another 30 min from there to my workplace. And it only takes a ten-min walk.

Thank you for pointing out that I need to get on the train as soon as it is available to passengers. I used to arrive at the train station just on time. And yes, my workplace is about 10-min walking distance from Kings Cross.

Thank you for your info! The link you provided is illuminating! May I know how you got to know when the additional portion arrive? From the link you provided, I can only see "Service gains coaches here". Thank you!

Thank you for the info! It's good to know I may be able to get on the additional portion while it is waiting to be coupled.

Thank you for the info!

I'd avoid booking with train line as they often charge a booking fee. Personally I'd book with the Great Northern App or I usually book with the trip.com app as they sometimes have promos on the price

MikeWM · 5 Apr 2024

LickeyIncliner said:
Another option, depending where you're living in Cambridge, is to board at Cambridge North. At least some people will get out at Cambridge and you can bag one of their seats before the Cambridge hordes get in the doors.

A lot of people seem to be cottoning on to this nowadays, judging by the ever-increasing quantity of people getting on at North on London-bound trains. But the strategy does work, as a large number of the passengers from Ely and further north are actually travelling to Cambridge, so you do have a lot of people getting off as well as a lot of people getting on.

--

arb said:
I would definitely take the colouring on that timetable with a pinch of salt. My most commonly used train nowadays is the 09:48 from Ely to Cambridge. As we depart Ely, there are only ever a few other people in my carriage maximum, regardless of the day of the week (it does fill up significantly from Cambridge North). But they've only given it the dark green colour ("usually many seats available") on Mon/Wed/Fri. On Tuesday they claim it's light green ("plenty of seats") and Thursday yellow ("some seats"). Whilst those definitions are obviously fairly subjective themselves, in my experience this train should be dark green at Ely every day of the week.

I'm fairly regularly on the 0948 too (hello 8-)

) and I agree, there's loads and loads of room, especially if you walk down the train a bit, at least until North. I don't see any difference whatever between Tue/Wed/Thu so not sure why they think there is any. Monday and Friday do tend to be a bit quieter still.

Fred Wang · 5 Apr 2024

LickeyIncliner said:
Another option, depending where you're living in Cambridge, is to board at Cambridge North. At least some people will get out at Cambridge and you can bag one of their seats before the Cambridge hordes get in the doors.

Thank you! I live right in the middle of the two train stations. But there is a bus that can lead me directly to the main station. Probably I should consider buying a bike now.

Mcv378 said:
I'd avoid booking with train line as they often charge a booking fee. Personally I'd book with the Great Northern App or I usually book with the trip.com app as they sometimes have promos on the price

Thank you! I will try the two apps. Do they provide up-to-date information about the train I will be taking, such as which platform I should go to?

MikeWM said:
A lot of people seem to be cottoning on to this nowadays, judging by the ever-increasing quantity of people getting on at North on London-bound trains. But the strategy does work, as a large number of the passengers from Ely and further north are actually travelling to Cambridge, so you do have a lot of people getting off as well as a lot of people getting on.

--

I'm fairly regularly on the 0948 too (hello ) and I agree, there's loads and loads of room, especially if you walk down the train a bit, at least until North. I don't see any difference whatever between Tue/Wed/Thu so not sure why they think there is any. Monday and Friday do tend to be a bit quieter still.

Thank you!

Ashfordian6 · 5 Apr 2024

MikeWM said:
A lot of people seem to be cottoning on to this nowadays, judging by the ever-increasing quantity of people getting on at North on London-bound trains. But the strategy does work, as a large number of the passengers from Ely and further north are actually travelling to Cambridge, so you do have a lot of people getting off as well as a lot of people getting on.

Additionally, Cambridge North is much quicker to get to in and out of, as well as the station parking not filling up (yet) on Mondays-Thursdays. You can easily save 30-45 minutes a day by using North over central Cambridge.

MikeWM · 5 Apr 2024

Ashfordian6 said:
Additionally, Cambridge North is much quicker to get to in and out of, as well as the station parking not filling up (yet) on Mondays-Thursdays. You can easily save 30-45 minutes a day by using North over central Cambridge.

Indeed. If everyone was back to working 5 days a week on the Science Park, that may well not be the case - but comparing the levels of traffic at that end of Milton Road with 2019, clearly they are not (myself included!).

swing · 5 Apr 2024

Fred Wang said:
Thank you! I will try the two apps.

How often are you travelling to London - there may be additional savings if you are travelling often.

dastocks · 5 Apr 2024

https://www.recenttraintimes.co.uk/ may be useful to see if there are any trains that are more frequently delayed and/or cancelled.

riceuten · 5 Apr 2024

Mcv378 said:
I'd avoid booking with train line as they often charge a booking fee. Personally I'd book with the Great Northern App or I usually book with the trip.com app as they sometimes have promos on the price

Almost all other TOCs and sites don't charge a booking fee, and yet brand recognition means they hoover up a huge number of sales. I've recently been converted to using QR codes on Thameslink and they work even better than my smart card.

One of the minorly irritating things about the Key Smartcard is that it is only valid to Foxton - presumably because Cambridge doesn't "belong" to the TSGN franchise

Fred Wang · 5 Apr 2024

swing said:
How often are you travelling to London - there may be additional savings if you are travelling often.

I will mostly travel twice a week, and sometimes thrice.

Fred Wang · 5 Apr 2024

dastocks said:
https://www.recenttraintimes.co.uk/ may be useful to see if there are any trains that are more frequently delayed and/or cancelled.

Thank you for the info!

duffield · 6 Apr 2024

Fred Wang said:
I will mostly travel twice a week, and sometimes thrice.

You might want to consider flexi-season tickets.

swing · 6 Apr 2024

Fred Wang said:
I will mostly travel twice a week, and sometimes thrice.

It's definitely worth some investigation then. A weekly season ticket may not provide a great saving, but may work if your travel days vary and you could combine (for example) a Thursday and Friday in the office one week with a Tuesday and Wednesday the following week (weekly tickets can start from any day of the week). However, a Flexi season ticket may be worthwhile, which offers 8 tickets over a 28 day period, and would reduce the cost per day, although given you need to buy upfront, and will lose any unused tickets, you do need to be confident you will use all 8 before purchasing to get the benefit.

I'd also recommend using this site's ticket purchasing facilities - it may be able to offer cheaper tickets by splitting the journey into parts that can reduce the cost compared to a ticket machine / the Great Northern app.

pelli · 12 Apr 2024

Fred Wang said:
Thank you for your info! The link you provided is illuminating! May I know how you got to know when the additional portion arrive? From the link you provided, I can only see "Service gains coaches here". Thank you!

You look in the list of trains for what happens earlier at the same platform (in this case platform 7), and find that there is a not-in-passenger-service train scheduled to terminate in the platform at 0648. Further, the "headcode"/"identity" of that train is 5T07, which hints that it is related to the 0709 departure which is 1T07. Note that non-passenger services don't have to stick to timetable as rigidly so can run early or late. Also I've just noticed that on Mondays and Fridays, 5T07 is not scheduled and 1T07 isn't shown as "gains coaches here", so don't expect to find an empty portion waiting on those days.

If you are eligible for a railcard that is valid during peak times (i.e. the 16-25 or 26-30 Railcard, which can be used even when you're 26/31 years old as long as you bought it while you were still 25/30 years old, or the Disabled Persons Railcard) then buying railcard-discounted anytime day returns for £34.70/day is cheaper than the flexi-season (£368.20/8days = £46.025/day) or a used-less-than-five-days weekly season (£155.30/week).

jammmmmsssssss · 12 Apr 2024

MikeWM said:
A lot of people seem to be cottoning on to this nowadays, judging by the ever-increasing quantity of people getting on at North on London-bound trains. But the strategy does work, as a large number of the passengers from Ely and further north are actually travelling to Cambridge, so you do have a lot of people getting off as well as a lot of people getting on.

Yeah I live to the west of Cambridge and anytime I go to London I go to north or if that line's closed, st neots

Cambridge-London commute

Member

RailUK Forums

Member

Member

Member

Established Member

Established Member

Member

Established Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Established Member

Member

Member

Established Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Member

Established Member

Member

Member

Member