DPS 2005, Cambridge, UK

Travel

GETTING TO CAMBRIDGE
It is not possible to fly direct to Cambridge. The international airports nearest to Cambridge with good public transport links are London Stansted (STN), London Luton (LTN), London Heathrow (LHR), and London Gatwick (LGW). There are direct coach services between all these airports and Cambridge. There is a direct train service between Stansted Airport and Cambridge. There is a fast, frequent train service between London King’s Cross station and Cambridge. (This is the principal direct service. Trains from London Liverpool Street Station also go to Cambridge but take significantly longer.) Travel from Heathrow to central London is by Tube (Piccadilly Line) or by express train to Paddington Station. From Gatwick Airport, trains into London take you to Victoria station or London Bridge station. Delegates based in Europe should consider the many services offered to Stansted (STN) and Luton (LTN) by the low cost carriers such as EasyJet and Ryanair. Bookings can only be made by internet. These carriers do not sell tickets through travel agencies.

GETTING FROM LONDON HEATHROW AND LONDON GATWICK TO CAMBRIDGE

Bus / Coach
The simplest way to get from the main London airports to Cambridge is by the scheduled bus service. This takes you from the bus (coach) station at the airport to central Cambridge. The journey time is 2.2 - 2.8 hours from Heathrow.

The frequency is always one per hour, but is half-hourly during the peak times. The schedules (timetables) can be accessed by going to the web site of the operator National Express. On the home page of this website select your arrival airport and select Cambridge as your destination. That will bring up the schedule.

You can buy the ticket on line or you can buy the ticket on the bus. Credit cards are accepted. The fare from Heathrow is 24 GBP one way, 31 GBP round trip.

Train
The train options are more complicated, just as time consuming, and no cheaper. But for those who want to take a train the most important thing to know is that the Cambridge express trains leave from King's Cross terminal in London. There are two an hour at XX.15 and XX.45 Monday - Saturday and one an hour at XX.15 on Sunday. These are express trains, taking 46 minutes to cover the 58 miles to Cambridge. From Heathrow you get to central London by the overground Heathrow Express or the underground Piccadilly Line; we do not recommend the latter because it is uncomfortable and slow. From Gatwick central London is by express overground train, the Gatwick Express. You get train tickets at trains stations. You cannot pay on the train.

Rental car
We strongly advise against using a rental car. The traffic is horrendous, the expense is enormous, and you have nowhere to park in Cambridge.

SuperShuttle
There is no equivalent of the SuperShuttle services that will be familiar to our visitors resident in North America

Taxi
The iconic London black cab from Heathrow to Cambridge will cost about $200.
This is not an option that 'locals' would ever take.

Private limo service
A private limo service will meet you inside the terminal. The uniformed driver will whisk you to Cambridge in a Mercedes or Volvo. The cost is of order $120.

The specialists in this respect are Kenway Cars. The prices on the website do not include sales tax (17.5%) or a modest tip for the driver. You can e-mail your enquiry to ken@kenwaycars.freeserve.co.uk.

For links to travel information with more details about travel services to and from Cambridge see: http://www.cam.ac.uk/cambarea/

IN AND AROUND CAMBRIDGE
Attendees contemplating bringing a car to Cambridge should be aware that:
- There is no parking whatsoever at the meeting venues or the colleges, apart from designated places for people with disabilities
- The historic heart of Cambridge is not accessible to private cars
- Street parking is very strictly controlled, expensive, and time-limited (pay-and-display system)

Local bus services in and around the city are operated by Stagecoach. For details see the Stagecoach website.

Any one-day only visitors who are planning to drive to Cambridge are strongly encouraged to park at the Madingley Road Park and Ride site and take the citi4 bus service to West Road.

The principal taxi companies in Cambridge are:

Cabco United, tel. 01223 711111
Panther tel. 01223 715715
Diamond tel 01223 523523

These taxi operators can be booked for airport pick-up and drop-off. Expect to pay £105 for LGW and £80 for LHR. A cab ride in Cambridge itself will cost £7 - £10, depending on the itinerary.