Travelling around Kent
Journey planning
All journeys are different and whether it's a quick trip to buy groceries or setting out to enjoy precious leisure time, by rethinking the way we travel we can help reduce our carbon footprint and make a real, positive and lasting difference to the sustainability of our environment and local community.
Here're some top tips to help you with your travel plans:
Bus
The main bus operators in Kent are Arriva (Maidstone, Medway, Tonbridge, Tunbridge Wells) and Stagecoach (Ashford, Canterbury, Faversham, Sittingbourne).
Some dedicated school services and rural routes are run by other companies, including NuVenture and Chalkwell .
There're numerous options for tickets and passes depending on where you live and which bus you use. The most up-to-date information for ticketing options can be found on each bus operator website or app.
Kent County Council operates several concessionary schemes such as the senior citizen’s bus pass and Young Person’s Travel Pass.
Train
Kent has good access to the train network with regular trains running between London and Dover, including the High-Speed train service operated by South Eastern.
For real time information on train services visit National Rail Enquiries or download the National Rail Enquiries app.
Most stations have secure bike storage, with dedicated lighting, CCTV and a guaranteed space. Visit www.nationalrail.co.uk/PlusBike for more information on station bike storage.
Walking and cycling
For shorter distances, walking, cycling and scooting can be a good way to beat the daily traffic jams, save money and help improve health and wellbeing. Depending on your fitness and mobility, on average you can cover 1 mile on foot or 3 miles by bike in 20 minutes.
Journey planners like Kent Connected can help you compare the smartest ways to get from A to B. There're also walking and cycling maps for Kent's major towns available to download.
Carsharing
If you’re travelling further distances and need to use a car, you can share your journey to save money. On average, regular commuters save £1000 a year by lift sharing. If you’re interested to see who’s travelling your way, but don’t know where to start, sign up to Kent Journey Share ( www.liftshare.com/uk/community/km ). You can get updates when other members are travelling your way, and set your profile to seek, or offer lifts, or both!
Car clubs
A ‘car club’ is a pay-as-you-go car that you can book and use when you need one. You can book a car from as little as 30 minutes, or for days at a time, only paying for the hire time and distance you drive. There are several Car Club operators in Kent, including Enterprise and CoWheels . Operators will ask you to set up an account and verify your driver licence details before you can make your first booking.
Smarter driving
Did you know that you can save money by changing the way you drive?
- Drive smoothly – anticipate the road ahead to smooth out your driving, and avoid unnecessary acceleration and braking.
- Change up a gear earlier – change up a gear as soon as your vehicle will comfortably take the next highest gear, usually around 2,000 to 2,500 RPM.
- Step off the accelerator – when you take your foot off the accelerator, most modern cars will not use fuel. So, take your foot off the accelerator as soon as possible when approaching a junction, traffic lights or driving downhill.
- Stick to the speed limit – going faster uses more fuel, so stick to the speed limit!