Paul Corfield wrote:
On Sat, 23 Nov 2013 20:20:23 +0100, juliejonesy
wrote:


Hi,
We will be travelling from Liverpool to London (Canary Wharf) on Tuesday
by minibus. We will be leaving school at 6am and we need to arrive in
Canary Wharf by 11am.

I am no expert on the motorways but is 4 hours enough time to get from
Liverpool to Stanmore allowing for the inevitable rush hour delays you
will hit at some point on your journey? Don't all motorways crawl to
a halt during the AM peak period so are you not at risk of being
clobbered somewhere in the West Midlands or south thereof?

The tube takes about 45-50 mins to C Wharf but you need to allow time
for buying tickets, parking time, etc etc.

I'd just question whether the 5 hours has any contingency in it for
delays plus the things I've said just above.

Can anyone tell me what would be the best option for this journey?
I was thinking Liverpool-Stanmore Tube station - Park - Tube info Canary
Wharf

This is probably fine given Stanmore is within easy reach of the M1
and offers you a direct link to Canary Wharf.

Can anyone recommend a better route or tell me if this sounds a good
option?

The problem is that the further in you go the more traffic you'll
encounter and therefore risk delays.

The only other route I can think of is the M40 into Hillingdon on the
Met Line. There is a reasonably large tube station car park there but
I've no idea how busy it gets. Met Line to Finchley Road and then
Jubilee line will get you in reasonably quickly as the Met runs semi
fast south of Harrow on the Hill and runs past several Jubilee Line
stations. It's a cross platform interchange at Finchley Road so very
simple. Baker St is much more involved so don't bother!

Haven't arranged parking yet as the NCP has height restrictions so
that's another thing Im looking for parking that's suitable for a
minibus at Stanmore or any other station recommended.

That's a real puzzle. The only thing I can suggest is perhaps a
plaintive phone call to LU Customer Services to see if the local LU
manager covering Stanmore might allow you to park your minibus in the
staff car park (assuming there is one at Stanmore). I can't guarantee
that there isn't a height restriction though!

All good suggestions. If Hillingdon doesn't provide suitable parking, there
must be more options one station further out at Uxbridge?