Zoopla reveals Britain’s best value commuter towns as 2.8% annual train fare price hike kicks in

  • Grays in Essex tops the list as the best value commuter spot for London with combined annual costs of £15,008 for a mortgage and season ticket

  • Elsewhere, Wolverhampton is best value option for Birmingham; Hindley is the top location for Manchester, and Dunfermline is the most cost-effective option for Edinburgh

As the annual train season ticket price hike comes into effect, Zoopla, the UK’s most comprehensive property destination, can reveal the most affordable towns for commuters looking to live within an hour’s travel time of five of Britain’s largest cities.

London:

Grays in Essex takes first place for those looking to commute into London by offering the cheapest combined annual mortgage and season ticket costs of £15,008 with a 41-minute commute into Fenchurch Street station. Leagrave in Bedfordshire places second, where home-owning commuters can travel to the capital in 55 minutes at a total annual cost of £15,399. Crayford in Kent follows closely in third with a combined price of £15,662 (41-minute commute).

Bristol:

For commuters to Bristol, across the water in Wales, Newport (Gwent) comes in first place with combined costs of £10,166 and a travel time of 35 minutes into Bristol Temple Meads station. Highbridge & Burnham (£11,595, 53-minute commute) and Bridgwater (£11,975, 59-minute commute) place second and third respectively.

Birmingham:

Heading up to Birmingham, Wolverhampton presents the best value (£7,483) with a commute time of 20 minutes.

Manchester:

Moving further north to Manchester, Hindley is the town that takes the top-spot with combined costs of £6,883 and a 58-minute journey.

Edinburgh:

Meanwhile, those working in Edinburgh should consider moving to Dunfermline to get the most affordable commute (32-minute journey). Here a combined annual mortgage and season ticket will cost £7,530 a year.

Laura Howard, Consumer Expert at Zoopla comments: “As the new season ticket prices come into effect this month, much to the frustration of millions of commuters across Britain, those looking to relocate to save money should pay close attention to these figures.

“The past decade has seen significant property price growth in prime London commuter belt towns, but despite this our analysis still picks out pockets across South East England that represent affordable value for commuters.

“Areas outside London and the South East are generally more affordable, but commuters can still save money on their daily travel into the likes of Birmingham and Bristol by looking at towns they might not have yet considered, but still have good transport links.”

-ENDS-

London’s most affordable commuter towns (ranked by cost)

Rank

Town

Outcode

Average annual mortgage costs

Season ticket cost 2020

Combined annual mortgage and season ticket cost

Travel time

1

Grays

RM17

£12,492.07

£2,516.00

£15,008.07

39 mins

2

Leagrave

LU4

£10,971.50

£4,428.00

£15,399.50

55 mins

3

Crayford

DA1

£13,522.53

£2,140.00

£15,662.53

41 mins

4

Basildon

SS16

£12,785.84

£3,020.00

£15,805.84

37 mins

5

Harlow

CM20

£12,414.86

£3,544.00

£15,958.86

41 mins

6

Dartford

DA1

£13,522.53

£2,628.00

£16,150.53

48 mins

7

Hockley

SS5

£14,379.94

£1,792.00

£16,171.94

51 mins

8

Stevenage

SG1

£12,288.99

£3,964.00

£16,252.99

36 mins

9

Billericay

CM12

£12,785.84

£3,696.00

£16,481.84

38 mins

10

Gravesend

DA11

£12,875.89

£3,672.00

£16,547.89

1h0 mins

Source: Zoopla, January 2020

Bristol’s most affordable commuter towns (ranked by cost)

Rank

Town

Outcode

Average annual mortgage costs

Season ticket cost 2020

Combined annual mortgage and season ticket cost

Travel time

1

Newport (Gwent)

NP20

£7,398.86

£2,768.00

£10,166.86

35 mins

2

Highbridge and Burnham

TA9

£8,787.23

£2,808.00

£11,595.23

53 mins

3

Bridgwater

TA6

£8,787.23

£3,188.00

£11,975.23

59 mins

4

Caldicot

NP26

£10,277.59

£1,784.00

£12,061.59

40 mins

5

Weston-Super-Mare

BS23

£10,924.82

£2,056.00

£12,980.82

39 mins

Source: Zoopla, January 2020

Birmingham’s most affordable commuter towns (ranked by cost)

Rank

Town

Outcode

Average annual mortgage costs

Season ticket cost 2020

Combined annual mortgage and season ticket cost

Travel time

1

Wolverhampton

WV1

£6,638.94

£845.00

£7,483.94

20 mins

2

Cannock

WS11

£7,088.53

£845.00

£7,933.53

59 mins

3

Stoke-On-Trent

ST4

£5,000.78

£3,272.00

£8,272.78

56 mins

4

Telford

TF3

£6,354.07

£1,928.00

£8,282.07

45 mins

5

Wilnecote

B77

£7,868.00

£1,520.00

£9,388.00

29 mins

Source: Zoopla, January 2020

Manchester’s most affordable commuter towns (ranked by cost)

Rank

Town

Outcode

Average annual mortgage costs

Season ticket cost 2020

Combined annual mortgage and season ticket cost

Travel time

1

Hindley

WN2

£5,675.38

£1,208.00

£6,883.38

58 mins

2

Wigan

WN1

£5,675.38

£1,212.00

£6,887.38

59 mins

3

Bolton

BL2

£5982.16

£1,072.00

£7,054.16

41 mins

4

Rochdale

OL11

£5,850.76

£1,212.00

£7,062.76

38 mins

5

Westhoughton

BL5

£5,982.16

£1,208.00

£7,190.16

59 mins

Source: Zoopla, January 2020

Edinburgh’s most affordable commuter towns (ranked by cost)

Rank

Town

Outcode

Average annual mortgage costs

Season ticket cost 2020

Combined annual mortgage and season ticket cost

Travel time

1

Dunfermline

KY12

£5,678.29

£1,852.00

£7,530.29

32 mins

2

Falkirk

FK1

£5,273.18

£2,280.00

£7,553.18

24 mins

3

Linlithgow

EH49

£6,255.99

£1,872.00

£8,127.99

48 mins

4

Airdrie

ML6

£5,036.18

£3,276.00

£8,312.18

46 mins

5

Coatbridge

ML5

£5,036.18

£3,564.00

£8,600.18

57 mins

Source: Zoopla, January 2020

- Ends -

Notes to editors

Zoopla analysed average mortgage and season ticket costs across a number of local authority areas that surround five of Britain’s largest cities to establish which locations within an hour’s travel time represent the best value to commute in from. Mortgage costs are based on two and three bedroomed properties mortgaged at a 2% interest rate for 25 years, with an 85% LTV.

Times and the 2020 annual railcard costs were taken from National Rail website here: http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/service/seasonticket/search

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