Ely vs Newmarket

Zayk786

Hi People,

I will be relocating to Cambridgeshire area very soon because of my new job in Cambridge so I am considering number of places around Cambridge to live in including Ely, Huntington and Newmarket. Somewhere around train stations.

Ideally it would have been Huntington but the trains from their don't have direct routes to Cambridge I believe. They have longer routes with higher costs for tickets. I have checked on Trainline site.

If not Huntington then whether its Ely or Newmarket. Which one would you recommend? based on schools (as I have family and kids), local people, standards of life and safety?

Thanks in advance.

EachPenny

Zayk786 wrote: »

I will be relocating to Cambridgeshire area very soon because of my new job in Cambridge so I am considering number of places around Cambridge to live in including Ely, Huntington and Newmarket. Somewhere around train stations.

Ideally it would have been Huntington but the trains from their don't have direct routes to Cambridge I believe. They have longer routes with higher costs for tickets. I have checked on Trainline site.

If not Huntington then whether its Ely or Newmarket. Which one would you recommend? based on schools (as I have family and kids), local people, standards of life and safety?

It depends where you are travelling to, but Ely has better rail connections than Newmarket. I used to travel from London to Bury St Edmunds quite regularly via Cambridge. The service from Cambridge to Bury St Eds via Newmarket runs hourly (then only 2 hourly) so although the journey to Newmarket from Cambridge is quite quick (about 20 mins) it might require a wait of up to an hour for a train. There is also no direct service from Newmarket to Ely - the Ely line doesn't have a station in Newmarket.

Although there is no direct rail route from Huntingdon to Cambridge, there is a guided bus route which might suit your needs?

Bear in mind Newmarket is actually in Suffolk, not Cambridgeshire - something you'll need to look at in terms of council tax and services.

victoriavictorious

Huntingdon is fine, and seems to be on the up but still affordable, Ely is lovely (and as you know, has direct trains to Cambridge) but property is very expensive; Newmarket is a bit more run down, imo. Safety wise, all are pretty safe but you might like to check that in detail on https://www.streetcheck.co.uk
The guided bus (B) from Huntingdon takes around an hour to Cambridge city centre - it runs along what used to be the old railway track; shame the railway wasn't reinstated instead as most people wanted, but that's another topic....

Lucky_Duck_2

I used to use the Suffolk end of the Cambridge to Newmarket railway line as part of my daily commute, it is single track for much of its length and trains could be delayed if there were problems on the main line out of London Liverpool Street.

DaftyDuck

Ely over Newmarket every time. I have lived in the former, my sis still lives (almost) in the latter, and I pass that way regularly.

For me, there would be virtually no advantage to Newmarket, with the exception of two things. One would be the better road link into Cambridge (and Norfolk, a commute I do weekly), the other would be access to prettier villages to the south east of Newmarket... where I grew up! However, they are pricey, and then the Cambridge commute becomes more difficult...

The commute into Cambridge itself is key: exactly where do you need to get to? The gridlock at rush hours can be intolerable, hence I gave up the commute and work from home much of the time. But, if you work on the southern campus, and live to the north, it will drive you bananas! Well, it did me, anyway!