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Journey planner.com - guide to transport in London

Wherever you live in London you'll need to get around and, despite the tendency of Londoners to complain about public transport whenever the opportunity arises, things aren't as bad as you'll be led to believe. With a large network of tubes, buses and trains to choose from the capital and surrounding areas are pretty well covered and the more you travel the better you'll get at working out the easiest and quickest way of getting where you need to be.

ZONES

The first thing you'll need to get your head around is the concept of zones. London Transport (LT), the authority who oversee all aspects of travel in the city, have divided London into 6 zones which start centrally with Zone 1 (covering the City and Westminster) and spread out in concentric circles to cover the rest of London and some areas of the commuter belt which are actually outside Greater London altogether. You can get a free map from LT which shows the layout and coverage of Zones 1-6. This map can be obtained at tube and train stations and is also handy to keep in your wallet or handbag for quick reference.

TRAVELCARDS

On tubes and trains you can buy single and return tickets for individual trips but, if you're travelling regularly, it often makes sense to invest in a travelcard, which entitles you to unlimited travel on tubes, buses, the DLR and trains within a specified set of zones. This will save you money and time as you won't have to queue up every morning to buy a ticket. Travelcards are available in daily, weekly, monthly and annual versions plus a weekend card which covers Saturday and Sunday and is cheaper than buying 2 one day cards. Travelcards are also available in a variety of zonal options so you need only pay for what you use. For example if you live in Zone 2 and travel into Zone 1 to work you can get a Zones 1 and 2 travelcard. Other variations include Zones 2-6 and Zone 1 only cards. Generally, the cheaper journeys are those which exclude Zone 1. Annual cards are only available at stations but most other kinds of travelcards (including the cheaper bus passes intended solely for use on the bus network) are available from various other outlets. These are known as pass agents and display stickers in their windows to let you know they sell travelcards. Usually these are newsagents and kiosks, often within stations themselves, and can be handy if the queue at ticket windows and machines are long.

TUBE

Officially called London Underground but know to most as The Tube, the network of subterranean lines criss-crossing London is world famous. Twelve lines cover the capital from East to West and North to South and the colour-coded map which represents them is a familiar image to most these days. The lines themselves are referred to by name rather than colour (e.g. Central line, Victoria line etc.) so you need to know the name of the line you want to use. The map is available free from tube stations and is easy enough to follow as lines are listed by both name and colour (once in a station, the direction for platforms for each line are usually indicated by both name and colour as well so all you'll need to do is make sure you're on the right platform for the direction you want). Unlike many other underground networks, the Paris Metro for example, the tube lines aren't named by terminus but by direction (eastbound, northbound, westbound or southbound) so, having reached the line you need, check your map to see which direction you need to go in. One thing to be aware of is the fact that some lines (District and Northern for example) split into different branches outside of central London so check you're on the right train. This may all seem a little complicated at first but you'll get used to it quickly and will find you don't need the map for many shorter journeys to familiar stations.

The big advantage of tubes is that they are frequent (more so than trains) and it's easy to see when you need to get off (unlike buses) so you can't really go too far wrong. If you do get a bit confused as to where you're going there are maps on most platforms and often members of London Underground staff (usually dressed in blue) you can ask. Failing that you can always ask a fellow passenger as most Londoners pride themselves on knowing how to get about (just ask a group of people the quickest way to get from Shepherd's Bush to Chalk Farm and watch the debate unfold). Tubes run from early morning to around midnight on most lines but check when your last train is to be on the safe side.

For information and prices either call the 24-hour London Travel Information Line on 020 7222 1234 or click on www.londontransport.co.uk.

TRAINS

Whilst tubes are often the best bet for navigating the inner parts of the city, trains are great for the outlying zones and beyond. Firstly you get daylight and fresh air on trains (a definite bonus in the summer) and secondly the distance between stations is greater so you'll get further more quickly. Trains aren't as frequent as tubes but often serve areas with no tube connections, particularly south of the Thames. Whilst you're within the 6 zones of the transport system your travelcard covers you for train travel as well as tubes so if it's easiest to get where you're going by train (or if the tubes aren't working!) then it's not a problem. When travelling by train it's handy to know exactly when your trains go as missing one by 30 seconds and having to wait 25 minutes is a real pain in the arse, especially if you've forgotten your book! You can get train information by calling 08457 484950. or online at www.thetrainline.com.

BUSES

There aren't many better ways to see a city than from the top deck of a bus and London is no exception. Buses are usually slower than tubes but, especially since the introduction of congestion charging on London's streets, things are getting better. Despite the fact that London's buses are owned and operated by a number of different companies, they all operate in the same way and recognise the zonal system and accept travelcards and bus passes.

The bus network is more complicated than that for the tube and can take a while longer to work out. Bus stops should have maps and boards to show you the routes they serve and the numbers of routes serviced by a particular stop are displayed on the bus stop sign itself. Buses display these numbers both on the front and back and, increasingly, on the side by the front doors. The display on the front will also show the final destination of the bus along with major stops along the way. There are 2 types of bus in operation at present, the old-fashioned 'routemaster' double-deckers with the entrance at the rear and a conductor who sells tickets rather than the driver, and the more modern buses which have an entrance at the front and middle doors for exit. On these you pay the driver on boarding. The fare system is simple : all journeys which involve travel in Zone 1 (whether entirely in this zone or travelling in from outside) cost £1 and all other non-Zone 1 journeys 70p. You won't need the exact fare but try to avoid paying with notes as drivers tend not to like it too much!

There is also an extensive network of night buses which travel throughout the night, long after tubes and trains have stopped. Add the London Travel Information Line (020 7222 1234) to the phone book on your mobile in case you get stuck.

DLR

DLR or Docklands Light Railway was opened in the late 1980s basically to connect the Docklands area and parts of south-east London to the centre of town. Trains go from Bank and Tower Hill out through Canary Wharf and Greenwich to Lewisham and up to Stratford to link with the new Jubilee Line extension. For certain areas the DLR is the easiest option for travel and, now the Jubilee Line covers more of the same areas, is much more integrated with the rest of the transport network. The first time you use it you may feel (especially on some of the elevated sections around Canary Wharf) like you're on a safari park style monorail but that all adds to the fun.