Festive Turbos and Burnham Sprouts
| Festive Turbos and Burnham Sprouts | ||||
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| Date | 16 December 2023 | |||
| Start time | 1000 | |||
| Start location | Liverpool Street | |||
| Required tickets | Thames Branches Day Ranger Bus ticket (PoD) Cross-London travel | |||
| Upcoming Events | ||||
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Festive Turbos and Burnham Sprouts
Saturday 16 December 2023 - 1000 onwards
Liverpool Street Kindertransport memorial statue, or en route
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The main concourse at Liverpool Street
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Kindertransport statue
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Join us for a pre-Christmas turbo-tastic adventure on the train. For this outing, we'll be exploring the delightful Thames Branches on the way out to Reading. You'll need a Thames Branches Day Ranger and, depending on where you join us, a valid ticket for cross-London travel. We will also be catching a bus during our adventure, for which a further fare will apply.
The day is largely centred around travelling on transport, so should be suitable for everyone. Please dress appropriately for the weather! All are welcome to join, community members new and old, although in line with all On Our Lines events all members aged under 16 must be accompanied by a parent and/or guardian, whilst those aged between 16 and 18 should seek permission from their parent and/or guardian. As always, the even will be bound by the On Our Lines Code of Conduct.
Please do invite any transport-loving friends or family along too - the more the merrier!
Attendees
If you are planning on attending, or attended, the event, you are encouraged to add your name here. If you are not joining us at Liverpool Street, please let us know where you intend to find us.
Ticketing
The best ticket for the day is a Thames Branches Day Ranger[1], which is £25, or £16.50 with a Railcard. We will also be catching a bus (£2, pay on board) and, depending on where you join or leave us, you'll need cross-London travel such as an Oyster or contactless card too.
Itinerary
We will be meeting at Liverpool Street by the Kindertransport memorial statue (near the main entrance to London Underground from the National Rail concourse) at 0945 to start our journey on the Underground. You are welcome to find us elsewhere on route if that's easier - approximate times are listed below, and we will keep our social media platforms updated throughout the day.
Our departure from Liverpool Street will be at about 1000 on the Central line to Greenford, aiming for the 1130 GWR departure to West Ealing, ticking off our first Thames Branch of the day.
Arriving at approximately 1141, we have an easy, ten minute change onto an Elizabeth line service to head west. Departing at 1151, we make the short journey to Hayes & Harlington arriving at 1185, for another change onto the 1205 service for Maidenhead. This will allow us to diverge to the Marlow branch via Bourne End, departing at 1234 and arriving at 1257. Here, we will find a cosy eatery to enjoy a well earned lunch.
The afternoon continues with our only bus journey of the day, the Arriva 800 from Marlow (departing at 1446 from Foxes Piece) to Henley-on-Thames, arriving at 1512. There's plenty of time to make our next rail connection here, giving time to have a little bit of an exploration around the town before boarding the 1600 service to Twyford, arriving at 1612 and rejoining the mainline.
Now in darkness, we will have the choice about whether to continue exploring the Branches and heading west to Tilehurst or Reading, or returning east towards Slough for our evening gathering. We'll take a group decision, and of course you are always free to choose your own adventure! If we do go west, in the seminal words of the Village People, our plan is to push the bounds of the rover as far as we can, taking the 1637 from Twyford direct to Tilehurst to arrive at 1657. Here we will have around 30 minutes, before taking a train to return east to Slough.
If you are not joining us for the evening event, we will leave you here and the same train will continue through to Paddington for a 1820 arrival, affording connections across London and beyond. However, if you are staying with us, we will transfer across to the branch platform, ready to board the 1810 service to Windsor & Eton Central, arriving at 1816.
Dress Code
Whilst we do not have any formal dress code for On Our Lines social events, we will always encourage you to wear your railway merch or pride swag, in keeping with the ethos of our community! Of course, please ensure first and foremost that you dress for the prevalent weather conditions of the day, and do ensure that any garments do not display any offensive or distasteful slogans or graphics.