Taking my bike onto trains for Stansted Airport

[miklcct]

I'm planning a trip next Sunday morning to a place which is far away from the railways. The closest rail station there is Stansted Airport.

Stansted Express trains don't allow carrying bikes. Starting from London what train services can I use instead?

 

[Mcr Warrior]

Could you travel to Stansted Airport with a non-folding bicycle on a Sunday by travelling from London Kings Cross with Thameslink/Great Northern and then changing at Cambridge for an onward XC service?

 

[Bletchleyite]

You could take a Greater Anglia stopping service to nearby Stansted Mountfitchet instead? Getting out of the airport on a bike will probably be a faff anyway. Look for one that doesn't stop at the airport. Or if easier Bishop's Stortford or Elsenham, depending which way you're headed - looking at an OS map there aren't many places where one of those would be hugely further.

I have never fully understood why bikes aren't allowed on StanEx when it is really just a semifast Greater Anglia service.

 

[miklcct]

You could take a Greater Anglia stopping service to nearby Stansted Mountfitchet instead? Getting out of the airport on a bike will probably be a faff anyway. Look for one that doesn't stop at the airport. Or if easier Bishop's Stortford or Elsenham, depending which way you're headed - looking at an OS map there aren't many places where one of those would be hugely further.

I have never fully understood why bikes aren't allowed on StanEx when it is really just a semifast Greater Anglia service.

I'm heading for Great Dunmow - leaving at any other stations will add at least 5 km into my ride there.

There are 2 bus routes but the frequency is too unattractive - hourly and two-hourly.

 

[Bletchleyite]

I didn't think someone so fitness obsessed would be bothered about cycling 5km! If you are the bus is probably the way to go.

Looking at the lay of the land I'd go with Stortford. There's an off road ex railway path too, though if you ride a narrow tyred road bike the road would probably suit better.

 

[CBlue]

An hourly bus service and it only takes 15 minutes, is it that bad...?

Additionally, google maps reckons it's a 40 minute bike ride from Elsenham to Great Dunmow, as opposed to 35 mins from Stansted and 50 minutes from Bishop's Stortford. I'd wager I'm far less fit than you and even I'd manage that.

 

[miklcct]

An hourly bus service and it only takes 15 minutes, is it that bad...?

I will need a detailed calculation to see if an all-bus journey (Bus 245 to Golders Green, A9 to Stansted Airport which is the fastest way using wholly public transport, but much more expensive than using a railcard-discounted day return on the railways) without using the railways or my bike) turns out better, but an hourly bus means half an hour wait on average which is very unattractive, and the other 2-hourly route doesn't help much.

If the bus runs half-hourly it will become a much more attractive option.

Additionally, google maps reckons it's a 40 minute bike ride from Elsenham to Great Dunmow, as opposed to 35 mins from Stansted and 50 minutes from Bishop's Stortford. I'd wager I'm far less fit than you and even I'd manage that.

Thank you. It seems that from Elsenham through the small roads may be a good idea for my final destination.

 

[Kite159]

I didn't think someone so fitness obsessed would be bothered about cycling 5km! If you are the bus is probably the way to go.

Looking at the lay of the land I'd go with Stortford. There's an off road ex railway path too, though if you ride a narrow tyred road bike the road would probably suit better.

The former railway path (Flitch Way) is reasonable but probably not suited for road bikes as the surface quality is a bit variable in places.

However if the OP is heading towards Great Dunmow, they could potentially use the train to Braintree to ride along said former railway route, depending what area of Dunmow they are heading to.

 

[miklcct]

The former railway path (Flitch Way) is reasonable but probably not suited for road bikes as the surface quality is a bit variable in places.

However if the OP is heading towards Great Dunmow, they could potentially use the train to Braintree to ride along said former railway route, depending what area of Dunmow they are heading to.

I am checking bus options now and there seems to be 3 routes (instead of 2), 2 routes (X40, 133) are hourly and 1 route (42A) is two-hourly, which gives an effectively headway of approximately half-hourly. As such travelling wholly by bus may be more attractive than taking my bike onto a train calling at Elsenham, which is only hourly.

 

[miklcct]

After thorough calculation, I think I will use the bike despite the all-bus route (245, then A6, then 42A or 133 or X40) is much faster. The reason is because the National Express A6 + 2 bus single fares from Stansted Airport is too expensive compared to a railcard-discounted super off-peak return train ticket, that I can save £16.33 by taking my bike there with the whole return journey taking 72 minutes longer on the clock (130 minutes longer apparently as I value my riding time to be 150% in-vehicle time, and also another 10 minutes for preparing and bringing my bike down and up my flat).

The best method without using the bike is to walk to Willesden Green to take the Jubilee, then Victoria, Stansted Express and the bus, which is 36 minutes slower than the all-bus route (i.e. 36 minutes faster than using a bike) but saves £9.60 compared to it, but that 36 minutes + riding effort saved still don't worth the £6.73 price difference to me.