Great Western Coffee Shop

I am doing a spot of research, and would be very grateful for your help. Vote for as many options as are relevant to you. Comments and opinions posted are very welcome.

I've ticked everything except Doctor, Hospital, Leisure Centre and, inexplicably, Railway Station.

The latter was an error; I'm five minutes' walk from Montpelier train station - are you able to correct that? I couldn't work out how to.

The nearest hospital is 25 minutes' walk, and that's how I get there. I even walked in when I needed a little heart surgery a few years ago. Our doctor is 20 minutes' walk away, and again that's how I get there. Horfield Leisure Centre is a ten minute drive; it's been a while since we went there but the combination of easy parking and two kids in tow with swimming gear makes the car the easiest way. If I was going on my own I'd probably walk; I'd be happier not to park a bike there..

After I submitted my list I realised that there is indeed a leisure centre within 15 minutes walk (just beyonf Chippenham station) so 1 needs adding to the Leisure Centre numbers

Fair enough - I have now set it to allow you to change your vote if necessary.

Sorted  :)

Incidentally, I've ticked 'School' because there is a school within that radius - though neither of our kids goes there...

Every single one except a railway station.   You may consider that somewhat ironic!

Perhaps I should have also ticked workplace since for the time being (at least the next 6 months) I am working from home

Feel free to change your vote if you need to - Appreciate the input of yourself and other members who have voted so far.

None, except a subsidised rural bus twice a week !

Nearly all for me - including two stations.

My place of work is currently a short walk away - downstairs - but I left that one as it is not normally.

Most of mine are guesstimates, as I don't walk but cycle.

Lee, don't know what the parameters of your research are, but are you aware of
https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/journey-time-statistics-data-tables-jts (https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/journey-time-statistics-data-tables-jts)
the lower super output area ones will cover some local requirements.
Apologies if this is stale news.

I do get those through, but as you can imagine,I by no means analyse or study every single one, and it's great to be pointed to exactly what I need - Thanks CyclingSid  :)

Submitted. Most are definitely less than 15 minutes walk but there's about 3 or 4 which Google Maps tells me are 15-19 minutes walk away but I walk fast and am confident I can do it quicker than that.

Everything but the hospital. (A little-known 80s indie band.) Not bad for a little town of just 3000 residents. It does depend on the definition of supermarket, I guess.

I ticked everything but the cycle route, because I wasn't sure what counts as a cycle route. Workplace was a bit of a cheat though, as I work from home. And some of them are somewhat irrelevant, such as restaurant; there is restaurant about 5 minutes walk away that has a very good reputation, but I've never actually been there... (Serious question, should we tick facilities which exist but which we never use?)

Yes, do tick an option if it is whithin 15 minutes walk even if you never use it, as what interests me is whether it is there and available. With working from home, use your own judgement (as others have done earlier in the topic) as to whether you consider it to be "Your Workplace". Ditto with the cycle route based on what you know about how it is used.

No Workplace (being retired, although given that SWTSMBO is still working perhaps I should reconsider and count the house as my place of work!), Hospital (which would be within 15 minutes in the back of an ambulance) or Leisure Centre (the Sandy Park David Lloyd Club is a 20 minute walk away).

I'm very much hoping to join the 'two stations' club in 2023 (though I won't hold my breath!). I am going on a guided tour of the site of Ashley Down station next week...

I'm in the three stations club, at least if I walk fast enough.  :) Montpelier, Redland, Clifton Down.

That must be VERY rare ... also possible at Ribena, Birchgrove and Ty Glas ... not many other places though.   New Beckenham, Kent House, Clock House?

Really? Even if your idea of 15 minutes' walk is a bit less than my 1 mile, much of inner Greater London would qualify for a significant fraction of houses. Much of Glasgow too, and not just in the centre. I suspect Glasgow might even have the maximum count, though I don't intend to try to work it out. I imagine other big cites would by similar, and smaller cities, like Edinburgh, have a few places too. Even Winnersh, just ... except no-one lives in the middle of the Loddon Bridge roundabout.

OK: It wouldn't occur to me to walk to Redland station, delightful though it is... but if I did, it would take me less than 15 minutes.

Would it be fair to introduce a rule that the stations can't be on the same line?

Intersting that a pub comes out high, may become more of a workplace as well: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-54472414

It's Lee's poll so he sets the rules. Although the poll doesn't ask how many, just that there is one, so is unaffected.

From where I live in Redland, both Redland and Montpelier Stations are fewer than 15 minutes away and in fact take very nearly the same amount of time to walk to.  Redland is just the closer (and nicer IMO) so that's the one that I use.

Some of those living in Exeter within the triangle created by St Davids, St Thomas and Central will also have 3 station club membership.....4 stations if you are resident near Central as that also brings St James Park into play. Exeter does have an generous railway station inheritance.

Indeed ... I think I fell for the trap of giving a "railway operational" answer looking at railway stations within 15 minutes of each other. I should have looked from the travelling person's viewpoint of 15 minutes from their home - which could of course be 30 minutes walk between stations if the walk happens to go past the home.

I used to live within 15 minutes walk of two stations - Staple Hill and Mangotsfield.

Unfortunately that was then and this is now

Co-incidentally, I just spotted this in WECA's West of England Recovery Plan:


Intrigued by '15 minute walking or cycling radius'. According to Wikipedia, average walking pace in cities is about 4.8 km/h, so 15 minutes should get you about 1200m. From my own experience of cycling in town, 15 km/h is comfortable, i.e. 3750m. That's quite a difference! So which one do they mean?

Or maybe not so coincidental... ;D

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/feb/07/paris-mayor-unveils-15-minute-city-plan-in-re-election-campaign

https://www.smartcitylab.com/blog/governance-finance/paris-15-minute-city/

Hmm, I'm starting to spot what might be a trend: https://www.udg.org.uk/events/2020/fifteen-minute-city/programme

I do like the idea of a Ribena station, but I think you might mean Rhiwbina.  :)

As it happens, I spent the first 10 years of my life living one hundred yards from Clock House station, from where Clock House, Kent House and (just) Beckenham Junction stations were within 15 minutes walk, with Elmers End and New Beckenham stations about 20 minutes away. I then spent my next 8 years living about 200 yards from Kent House station, from where Kent House, Clock House and (just) Birkbeck stations were within 15 minutes walk, and New Beckenham, Penge East and Penge West stations within 20 minutes, and Beckenham Junction and Anerley almost as close.

I then moved to Cardiff, but not to those parts...

If we are going to have a Ribena station, then we will need a Ribena train to call there...