Rant: why is T5 so badly connected?
Jan 6, 2019, 2:09 pm
#32
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Chelsea
Programs: BA Gold
Posts: 1,226
That’s how many of us think of it too!
A lot of London transport quibbles are to do with perception. I am sympathetic: faffing around waiting for the Piccadilly Line to do its thing when you just want to get home is such a bore and makes it all seem a lot worse than it actually is. Though I agree with the absurdly late start heading to the airport in the morning (I think the first train ex-Gloucester Rd is 05:56).
A lot of London transport quibbles are to do with perception. I am sympathetic: faffing around waiting for the Piccadilly Line to do its thing when you just want to get home is such a bore and makes it all seem a lot worse than it actually is. Though I agree with the absurdly late start heading to the airport in the morning (I think the first train ex-Gloucester Rd is 05:56).
Jan 6, 2019, 2:18 pm
#33
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: London, UK
Programs: BAEC GGL/GFl, HH Diamond, BW Diamond, Virgin Voyages Deep Blue Extra, Blue Peter Badge Holder
Posts: 3,937
I have to say that I've never considered LHR to be badly connected when it comes to getting into central London. If, God forbid, your final destination is somewhere in the flaming orc pits of Mordor that lie outside the M25, then things do tend to get a bit tricker. But Londoners do not, I fear, have much cause to complain.
I can certainly think of airports where the only nod to any form of public transport is a bus.
I can certainly think of airports where the only nod to any form of public transport is a bus.
With this discussion I can’t help but think of the Yes Monister sketch
Jan 6, 2019, 2:27 pm
#34
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: London
Programs: BA Silver Seigneur des Horaires des Mucci.
Posts: 2,047
I agree LHR is a pain to get to
HEX is such a waste of potential; over priced , starting from a terminal
not quite in the centre of town and not frequent enough ((i really feel sorry for those having to wait for the shuttle to Terminal 4)!
I am not quite sure how crossrail will work; I think LHR will be in a spur ; Will T5 be the first starion in the spur?
For me living in Farringdon
LGW is direct 40 mins thameslink (28 miles)
LHR is circle line 15 mins, HEX 20mins olus wait time call it 40 mins (17 miles)
LCY is 40 mins on tube and DLR (6.5 miles)
LTN is. 57 mins includinding the darstadly bus (27 miles)
STN is 1hr 15 (30 miles)
So I guess LGW wins hands down ! in terms of ease of transportation for the distance travelled
If factoring in the ease of use when you get there then its
LCY
LHR
LGW
STN
LTN
HEX is such a waste of potential; over priced , starting from a terminal
not quite in the centre of town and not frequent enough ((i really feel sorry for those having to wait for the shuttle to Terminal 4)!
I am not quite sure how crossrail will work; I think LHR will be in a spur ; Will T5 be the first starion in the spur?
For me living in Farringdon
LGW is direct 40 mins thameslink (28 miles)
LHR is circle line 15 mins, HEX 20mins olus wait time call it 40 mins (17 miles)
LCY is 40 mins on tube and DLR (6.5 miles)
LTN is. 57 mins includinding the darstadly bus (27 miles)
STN is 1hr 15 (30 miles)
So I guess LGW wins hands down ! in terms of ease of transportation for the distance travelled
If factoring in the ease of use when you get there then its
LCY
LHR
LGW
STN
LTN
Jan 6, 2019, 2:34 pm
#35
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Switzerland
Posts: 1,573
I don't find it too bad, especially considering the size of London, but ...
HEX - not only is it very expensive (especially as I usually need to add a zone1 tube ticket on top of the price) but at the weekends as it seems to fall to a one-every-30-minutes schedule it isn't even that fast.
TUBE - waiting for a tube to/from T5 is often over the 10 minute scheduled wait time plus it seems to take ages to get anywhere. It makes me miss the Manhattan express metros. However, it's cheap. Ł3.10 outside of peak times.
As far as I can work out, Crossrail will be Ł7.30 to zone 1 including tube transfers. Have I got that right? That's not bad, although the service will only be one train every 30 minutes.
HEX - not only is it very expensive (especially as I usually need to add a zone1 tube ticket on top of the price) but at the weekends as it seems to fall to a one-every-30-minutes schedule it isn't even that fast.
TUBE - waiting for a tube to/from T5 is often over the 10 minute scheduled wait time plus it seems to take ages to get anywhere. It makes me miss the Manhattan express metros. However, it's cheap. Ł3.10 outside of peak times.
As far as I can work out, Crossrail will be Ł7.30 to zone 1 including tube transfers. Have I got that right? That's not bad, although the service will only be one train every 30 minutes.
Last edited by adrianlondon; Jan 6, 2019 at 2:49 pm Reason: Crossrail trains per hour
Jan 6, 2019, 2:36 pm
#36
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Argentina
Posts: 40,199
Until not that long ago EZE never used to be accessible by public transport from BA at all....unless you had about 4 hours to kill and were prepared to walk the last kilometre or two. For more up-to-date info wake up the Argentina forum.
Jan 6, 2019, 2:38 pm
#37
Join Date: Oct 2015
Location: London, UK
Programs: BAEC GGL/GFl, HH Diamond, BW Diamond, Virgin Voyages Deep Blue Extra, Blue Peter Badge Holder
Posts: 3,937
I agree LHR is a pain to get to
HEX is such a waste of potential; over priced , starting from a terminal
not quite in the centre of town and not frequent enough ((i really feel sorry for those having to wait for the shuttle to Terminal 4)!
I am not quite sure how crossrail will work; I think LHR will be in a spur ; Will T5 be the first starion in the spur?
For me living in Farringdon
LGW is direct 40 mins thameslink (28 miles)
LHR is circle line 15 mins, HEX 20mins olus wait time call it 40 mins (17 miles)
LCY is 40 mins on tube and DLR (6.5 miles)
LTN is. 57 mins includinding the darstadly bus (27 miles)
STN is 1hr 15 (30 miles)
So I guess LGW wins hands down ! in terms of ease of transportation for the distance travelled
If factoring in the ease of use when you get there then its
LCY
LHR
LGW
STN
LTN
HEX is such a waste of potential; over priced , starting from a terminal
not quite in the centre of town and not frequent enough ((i really feel sorry for those having to wait for the shuttle to Terminal 4)!
I am not quite sure how crossrail will work; I think LHR will be in a spur ; Will T5 be the first starion in the spur?
For me living in Farringdon
LGW is direct 40 mins thameslink (28 miles)
LHR is circle line 15 mins, HEX 20mins olus wait time call it 40 mins (17 miles)
LCY is 40 mins on tube and DLR (6.5 miles)
LTN is. 57 mins includinding the darstadly bus (27 miles)
STN is 1hr 15 (30 miles)
So I guess LGW wins hands down ! in terms of ease of transportation for the distance travelled
If factoring in the ease of use when you get there then its
LCY
LHR
LGW
STN
LTN
i guess other factors, other than time, connectivity on transit, hoe comfortable the journey is, number of times change of transport is needed, security line ease/time, lounge quality, cost and quality of the flights and destinations. All variable that alter ones experience and preferences.
Jan 6, 2019, 2:49 pm
#38
Join Date: Jan 2015
Location: london
Programs: BA Silver
Posts: 266
Just depends where you live.
I'm north east London zone 3 but near the Piccadilly line so takes me 1 hour and 10 minutes but a vertmy easy journey. . Dump my case in a corner and relax with a book. HEX wouldn't be much quicker with the faff of changing to get to Paddington. City is closest geographically but involves at least two changes so not much quicker. Gatwick involves a decent walk from tube to train whether I go via Victoria or King's Cross so I only go there on hbo fares. And I did once end up at Luton by accident and after bus, train, tube and a long bus ride, never again.
So on the whole with luggage, Heathrow is the easiest for me but someone else a few miles west might find Luton easier or City if they live further east. Those little accidents of geopraphy that mean for one person it's an easy run and for another the journey from hell.
My gripe is with stairs at my various starting points which doesn't make things easy.
I'm north east London zone 3 but near the Piccadilly line so takes me 1 hour and 10 minutes but a vertmy easy journey. . Dump my case in a corner and relax with a book. HEX wouldn't be much quicker with the faff of changing to get to Paddington. City is closest geographically but involves at least two changes so not much quicker. Gatwick involves a decent walk from tube to train whether I go via Victoria or King's Cross so I only go there on hbo fares. And I did once end up at Luton by accident and after bus, train, tube and a long bus ride, never again.
So on the whole with luggage, Heathrow is the easiest for me but someone else a few miles west might find Luton easier or City if they live further east. Those little accidents of geopraphy that mean for one person it's an easy run and for another the journey from hell.
My gripe is with stairs at my various starting points which doesn't make things easy.
Jan 6, 2019, 2:53 pm
#39
Join Date: Oct 2005
Programs: BA GGL & GfL, AA LTP, Marriott (sigh) Ambassador, Hilton Diamond
Posts: 3,227
HEX has been frustrating with delays and lately the 30min service on weekends. i live in shoreditch so to paddington is at least 45-55mins either by uber or tube. then HEX etc etc.
because of that, whenever i fly from LCY, i am BEYOND excited as it is only 20min door to door in uber or slightly longer if HBO via overground/dlr.
because of that, whenever i fly from LCY, i am BEYOND excited as it is only 20min door to door in uber or slightly longer if HBO via overground/dlr.
Jan 6, 2019, 3:00 pm
#40
Join Date: Dec 2009
Location: southampton
Programs: BAEC GGL, Virgin Silver, Marriott Platinum, HH diamond, IHG Platinum
Posts: 257
I think T5 is reasonable for getting into London if you are prepared to pay or dont have luggage. I do it fairly regularly on the HEX. However it is pretty badly connected to everywhere else. The only way to go South where I live is coach for 30mins then train or coach that takes around 2.5 hours for a journey that is only just over an hour in a private car. It would be great if Heathrow was properly connected to the railway network like Amsterdam.
Jan 6, 2019, 3:03 pm
#41
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: YYC
Programs: BA bronze, Aeroplan peon
Posts: 4,742
As someone who doesn't live in the UK, I find LHR is very well connected to London. Many other airports I have been to have minimal public transport options, or just taxi's at great expense. I find getting to T5 a breeze and cheap in comparison. YVR would be the closest competitor I have been to, but it is still more expensive to get to central Vancouver.
Jan 6, 2019, 3:03 pm
#42
Join Date: Oct 2017
Programs: BAEC Silver, Flying Blue Platinum; Hilton Gold, IHG Diamond, Marriott Titanium, Wyndham Diamond
Posts: 787
I think T5 is reasonable for getting into London if you are prepared to pay or dont have luggage. I do it fairly regularly on the HEX. However it is pretty badly connected to everywhere else. The only way to go South where I live is coach for 30mins then train or coach that takes around 2.5 hours for a journey that is only just over an hour in a private car. It would be great if Heathrow was properly connected to the railway network like Amsterdam.
Jan 6, 2019, 3:05 pm
#43
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: London
Programs: BA Silver Seigneur des Horaires des Mucci.
Posts: 2,047
That would indeed be the dream. I have some mad crayonista dreams for post-Crossrail use of the HEX paths to take a train up the Greenford branch instead of to PAD, and then up the Chiltern Mainline to Moor Street. Direct Birmingham to Heathrow connection. That would be perfect.
Will HEX exist beyong crossrail?
Jan 6, 2019, 3:09 pm
#44
Join Date: Oct 2017
Programs: BAEC Silver, Flying Blue Platinum; Hilton Gold, IHG Diamond, Marriott Titanium, Wyndham Diamond
Posts: 787
Crossrail will use the (existing) Great Western Mainline (GWML) from Reading and Heathrow to Paddington (PAD). At PAD it will go onto a new low-level station and enter the new-build tunnel. HEX is planned to continue in existence, and in fact its operation was recently contracted out to Great Western Railway (GWR), who will be converting some of the Class 387 trains they use for current suburban services on the GWML for use on the HEX services, so replace the Class 332s that are currently used. Whether this will survive the commercial reality of a post-Crossrail world is a different story.
Jan 6, 2019, 3:12 pm
#45
Join Date: Dec 2013
Posts: 35
My biggest annoyance with Heathrow in general is that you are pretty stuffed if you are attempting to reach it from any direction other than central London by public transport - though T5 is infinitely better by car/taxi due to not having the "terrible tunnel" bottleneck that T2/3 suffer with. Even eastwards, you can find yourself under the flightpath and STILL have no sensible public transport options that don't involve horrible bus connections or a taxi at least some of the way. Any additional irritation caused by having to get to T5 vs T2/3 pales into insignificance in relation to that I think.
The one thing that does still bug me about T5 in particular, is that they could have connected it to the train line at Staines from the start (and a platform was even provided with that in mind), but it never happened. Even if it had been a shuttle between Staines and T5, it would still have been a massive improvement for the thousands of people who live along the Reading/Windsor to London corridor. Instead we seem obsessed with adding yet more capacity from Paddington...
Having said all that, I've seen many worse airports to get to around the world (even the UK). LAX always amazed me that it had no non-road based transport options (up until very recently). Inverness and Aberdeen win awards for most bizarre lack of thinking with their "close but no cigar" approach to rail connections. In comparison all airports in London (except Luton with it's wacky and expensive cash only bus connection, though that is soon to be remedied at last) are pretty accessible by public transport!
The one thing that does still bug me about T5 in particular, is that they could have connected it to the train line at Staines from the start (and a platform was even provided with that in mind), but it never happened. Even if it had been a shuttle between Staines and T5, it would still have been a massive improvement for the thousands of people who live along the Reading/Windsor to London corridor. Instead we seem obsessed with adding yet more capacity from Paddington...
Having said all that, I've seen many worse airports to get to around the world (even the UK). LAX always amazed me that it had no non-road based transport options (up until very recently). Inverness and Aberdeen win awards for most bizarre lack of thinking with their "close but no cigar" approach to rail connections. In comparison all airports in London (except Luton with it's wacky and expensive cash only bus connection, though that is soon to be remedied at last) are pretty accessible by public transport!