Coaches from London to Colchester County High for Girls

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AQM1
Posts: 13
Joined: Sun Dec 29, 2013 10:25 pm

Coaches from London to Colchester County High for Girls

Post by AQM1 »

Is anyone aware of coaches/buses that go to Colchester Girls' school from London?
Minesatea
Posts: 1234
Joined: Sat Oct 31, 2009 12:08 am

Re: Coaches from London to Colchester County High for Girls

Post by Minesatea »

Where abouts in London?
National express coaches take 2 -3 hours central london to Colchester so this is not a realistic option. DD knows a few girls who train to ColCHS from Stratford. It is a long day for them though.
AQM1
Posts: 13
Joined: Sun Dec 29, 2013 10:25 pm

Re: Coaches from London to Colchester County High for Girls

Post by AQM1 »

Thank you so much Minesatea. We are close to Stratford. We have also looked at possible journey by train from Stratford but unsure the distance from the station to the school and if it is a straight route. We are also looking at WHSG and trying to work out which school will be easier to get to.
ToadMum
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Joined: Wed Jan 18, 2012 12:41 pm
Location: Essex

Re: Coaches from London to Colchester County High for Girls

Post by ToadMum »

Not very familiar with ColCHS but apparently it is quite a long walk or a slow bus from the station,

The actual train journey direct from Stratford to Colchester is the same as Stratford direct to Sourthend Victoria - c.52 minutes. If you get the 0702 from Stratford to Southend Vic, you can get a bus - Arriva route 29 - at 0812, terminating at the Westcliff Schools about 15 minutes later; there are other buses. Alternatively you can get the c2c line from West Ham to Chalkwell then a 20-25 minute walk.

For SHSG, you can get a bus from Southend Vic - or a few minutes walk to a stop avoiding the loop down to the travel centre and back - or you can get the c2c line from West Ham to Southend East, then a 15 minute walk mainly on the flat, unlike the walk from Chalkwell to WHSG...

BTW c2c is cheaper than Greater Anglia, and has nicer trains :lol: .

And there are lots of nice places to live down here which are very convenient for both WHSG and SHSG.
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KB
Posts: 3030
Joined: Tue Mar 04, 2008 3:28 pm

Re: Coaches from London to Colchester County High for Girls

Post by KB »

Its not a sensible walk from station to school.
You could get a bus into town centre then walk or change bus.
Not sure if there is a bus that goes all the way- if you check timetables you need to look for buses that go along Lexden Rd or to Norman Way schools.
An alternative would be to get the train to Marks Tey and bus in from the other way ( 70) which stops on lexden Road at the end of Norman way.
The problem with buses is that from 8am the traffic is awful so a short distance takes a long time.
Minesatea
Posts: 1234
Joined: Sat Oct 31, 2009 12:08 am

Re: Coaches from London to Colchester County High for Girls

Post by Minesatea »

CoCHS is unfortunately a long way from Colchester North Station. I would not consider it walkable by an 11 year old with a heavy school bag. Those that train into Colchester catch either the first buses 65 service that goes past the end of Norman way, or DDs bus, the Chambers 84 school special sudbury to ColCHS which leaves the station at 8:05.
The Eskimo
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Joined: Fri Apr 26, 2013 10:54 am

Re: Coaches from London to Colchester County High for Girls

Post by The Eskimo »

I would echo what others have said here. Walking from Colchester North station to ColCHS is quite a trek when fully laden. It's not a 'nice' walk either. Not in terms of it being threatening, but you have to negotiate two or three of Colchester's busiest roads during rush hour. The other problem being that the bus journey at those times of day in Colchester is a real slog, even though the distance isn't great at all.
AQM1
Posts: 13
Joined: Sun Dec 29, 2013 10:25 pm

Re: Coaches from London to Colchester County High for Girls

Post by AQM1 »

Thank you Toadmum. Westcliff is indeed a lovely area to live. I was there last weekend visitng friends. We are currently not in the position to move, but never say never! :)
AQM1
Posts: 13
Joined: Sun Dec 29, 2013 10:25 pm

Re: Coaches from London to Colchester County High for Girls

Post by AQM1 »

Thank you KB. I had a look at the Marks Tey route which seems less complicated. Thanks also for the reminder about the unpredictable morning traffic. We are still undecided. DD likes WHSG as she knows someone there and 2 people that are hoping to start in Sept 2015.
AQM1
Posts: 13
Joined: Sun Dec 29, 2013 10:25 pm

Re: Coaches from London to Colchester County High for Girls

Post by AQM1 »

Thank you all for the information. I went with DD on the train yesterday to the enquiry visit. The journey was fine. We stopped at Marks Tey and took a bus to Lexden Road. The visit was worthwhile. We received lots of information about the school. DD is now saying she wants to go there and will happily go by train. Decisions! Decisions!
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