Advice on areas to live? Leatherhead, Epsom, Chessington, Lightwater, Bagshott?

clairey22

Hi all,

I am due to start a new job soon in Kingston-upon-Thames and my OH already works in Addlestone. We currently live in Crawley, West Sussex (30 miles from my new job). In the short term I will be getting the train or driving but our house is in the process of being sold and we will move into rented somewhere closer to our new jobs.

I am now looking at all the possibilities of places to rent and would like some advice on nice areas or areas to avoid etc.

At the moment I am looking at Leatherhead, Fetcham, Epsom, Chessington, Lightwater, Bagshott as they all look like places that we could both easily get to work from. Can anyone tell me what these areas are like? Or suggest any other places?

I would like it to be a safe area and and I am looking to rent a house not a flat (budget £1300 max per month) and need 2 parking spaces.

Also I have been checking the "live traffic" on Google Maps and it looks like several of the routes into Kingston get very busy in the mornings. Does anyone drive into Kingston and could give me advice on routes to avoid? or am I worrying over nothing?

Thanks
Clairey

WelshNic

Look out Sunbury way, anywhere in Kingston is busy in the morning, esp coming from New Malden and around Hampton Court.

We did the reverse move 8 yrs ago (down to Horsham)

clairey22

WelshNic wrote: »

Look out Sunbury way, anywhere in Kingston is busy in the morning, esp coming from New Malden and around Hampton Court.

We did the reverse move 8 yrs ago (down to Horsham)

Thanks WelshNic :-)

Horsham is lovely if we were staying down here then I would be looking to move there.

WelshNic

It's so lovely we're selling up and moving to Wales

If you want any specific info on areas, just ask, I know that part of Surrey pretty well

If your OH is in Addlestone I'd definitely be looking at the M3 side of Kingston though, Whitton/Twickenham etc.

Anything the other side would be a nightmare traffic wise - and you could easily get a train to Kingston (much easier).

devotee

Hampton village, Sunbury or Twickenham. Wouldn't do Whitton really. Too close to Hounslow (noise) and not as well kept as Twickenham.

zagubov

WelshNic wrote: »

Look out Sunbury way, anywhere in Kingston is busy in the morning, esp coming from New Malden and around Hampton Court

New Malden's advantages are; leafy, spacious, villagey, easy to park, good shops, good schools (if that's important), not much crime, good links to London (trains to 1.30 in the morning) fast buses to Croydon / Heathrow, many trains to Kingston.

For Addlestone there's the A3 (in the quiet direction) -or if you can bear two changes you're there in half-an-hour via Surbiton. Driving to Kingston from New Malden can be a bit of a mare but otherwise I'd rate it highly. You get quite a lot for your money considering how close into London you are.

WelshNic

New Malden is a dump compared to what it was 10 yrs ago - why do you think we moved out of the area :rotfl:

ukcarper

Kingston is not easy to get by train from any of those places and the drive in can be very busy. But if your job is on the right side of Kingston (Surbiton side) the walk from Surbiton station is not to bad. As for Addlestone it might be easier from Lightwater as the M25 between Leatherhead and Addlestone can be very busy in the mornings as can the alternative route via Cobham.

I would say Lightwater and Bagshott are different kinds of places to the other being quite small and further from London.

emmatthews

Walton & Weybridge are great for both Addlestone & Kingston. On a clear run, both are about a 15 minute drive. Having said that, getting to Kingston in rush hour is never going to be stress free!

00ec25

Leatherhead - for that budget you'll many be in North Leatherhead so right side for Kingston but not at all the "recommended" side of town. Leatherhead very full of places to eat but go elsewhere to shop
Fetcham - mainly large family houses out of your price bracket or small ex council terraces. No bad areas but VERY suburban and neither a village nor a town
addlestone - no comments - I don't go there, I go elsewhere

re travel I have worked in Kingston for years and regularly commute from 2 directions.
Portsmouth Rd direction into Kingston is the best of the bad IF you want that side of Kingston, the route down Kingston Hill from A3 Robin Hood gate juntion can take 40 minutes to do 3 miles so even though it took 5 minutes on the A3 avoid this like the plague unless you work at Kingston hospital, if you want the other side of Kingston then coming over Kingston Bridge is OK but not if you then need to go far around the one way system

from leatherhead/fetcham -
if you go the direct way ie J9 M25 then in on A 243 passed Chessington this will be 35 - 45 mins if arriving for 9am. It is an obvious feeder from the M25 and has heavy traffic that is slow but moving
or
if you go out to Cobham then it's a twisty road to Cobham (but can be driven fast if you have a death wish), then fight your way on to the A3 and turn off at Hook Underpass on a local rat run then fight your way through the Surbiton back streets (20mph zones) overall average 45 - 50 minutes
or
go to Esher (either via Cobham and the old Portsmouth Rd or direct via Oxshott (more narrow "country" roads), fight past the Scilly Isles Rd'about then staright down Portsmouth Rd to Kingston - averages 35 - 45 minutes for 9am start


from Addlestone
getting through Weybridge is a pain because of the river crossing , once through you have a choice - I go via Hersham and Esher then in from there as above - can take up to 50 minutes depending on Weybridge
or
from weybridge go down river to Walton then continue on to Hampton , light traffic but turing right at Hampton to get to Ditton and the Portsmouth rd run into Kingston is a pain (or go via back streets to the Rd'about halfway down Hamptonb Ct Way then take back streets of Ditton (avoids Scilly Isles). Convoluted side streets, have to drive safely coz of speed bumps and so feels slow
or
go along Hurst Rd to Hampton Ct bridge , turn left and cross the river then go into Kingston on the north bank and cross back over Kingston Bridge - this route depends on where in Kingston you are going coz you then have to circumnavigate the one way system if you want the town centre. All depends on your end point as the chokepoints from this direction are Weybridge and Kingston itself

00ec25

emmatthews wrote: »

Walton & Weybridge are great for both Addlestone & Kingston. On a clear run, both are about a 15 minute drive. Having said that, getting to Kingston in rush hour is never going to be stress free!

Dream on, it is NEVER clear at rush hour :rotfl:it can take 15 mins just to get from Esher past the Scilly Isles