If you are going to be living in London you are crazy if you think you will be owning a car! Gas, parking, and City-imposed daily car charges (congestion charges) will cost you a small fortune. Do you self a favor and don’t even think of owning a car in London (outside of London, fine).
The good thing about living in London is you won’t miss our car one bit. Public transportation is excellent and comes in many forms:
Taxi
Tube
Bus
London’s famous black cabs are for the most part really expensive, so you won’t be taking these a lot unless you have tons of disposable income. Most people get around on the tube (London Underground) or the bus. Bus fares are £1.50 from pickup to drop off.
The tube is probably the most popular way to get around. If you are going to be taking it, getting an Oyster Card is a must! Oyster is London's ticketing and revenue system. At its heart is the Oyster card, a 'smartcard' which makes buying and using tickets easier.
An Oyster card can store up to £90 of cash which can be used to pay as you go. It can be used on the Tube, trams, buses, DLR, London Overground and some National Rail services in London.
An Oyster Card has several advantages over paper tickets:
- Oyster single fares are generally cheaper
- Credit can be used as you need it and doesn't expire
- Daily price capping automatically calculates the cheapest fare for the journeys you make in a single day
Official Oyster site here: https://oyster.tfl.gov.uk/oyster/entry.do
Of course there are two other great ways to get around the city as well: walking and biking! The city is very friendly to both of these!
If you are traveling outside of London, besides car, there are two other great ways to get around England – the national rail lines. The two biggest operators are First Great Western and National Rail.
Moving to London ©2009
