Public Transport

Trains - Greater Anglia - Sudbury and Braintree branch lines and mainline from Witham, Marks Tey and Colchester.

PUBLIC TRANSPORT

F315   Bus Service  - Sudbury> < Halstead viaGestingthorpe  

F 315 is a Flexible Service of 6 buses each way per day, with a roughly two to two and a half hourly intervals. It is one of the DaRT services run by Arrow Taxis of Maldon. 

Click here for the F315  EARLIEST DEPARTURE TIMETABLE

This gives the times buses arrive at stops if they take the direct route from Halstead or Sudbury and there are no delays 

Sudbury  >  Gestingthorpe is always direct.  
Buses from Halstead to Gestingthorpe may have to divert to serve Great Maplestead and/or Pebmarsh. They could be arrive up to 19 minutes later than the “earliest time.” 

Outside of the towns, most of the buses are hail and ride anywhere except on blind bends. 

Journeys to or from Great Maplestead or Pebmarsh and all journeys on last buses each day (even if getting on at Sudbury or Halstead), must be booked 2 working hours in advance. 

Phone Booking - 01621 874411   Bookings can also be made via bookings@essexandsuffolkdart.co.uk the previous working afternoon. 

Bookings are advised for busy services, such as the 15:30 out of Sudbury. It is also advisable to check the service in the event of road closures or heavy snow (the bus depot is in Maldon).

General Warning Online travel apps may give the average time the bus could arrive, or even the latest time of arrival. If you get to the bus-stop at their times, you might catch the bus, or you might have missed it. Some Apps have stopped showing the F315, but it still runs (October 2020). 

Click here for the F315  EARLIEST DEPARTURE TIMETABLE. The time you need to be at the bus stop!

F 315 in COVID-19 PANDEMIC.

To maintain appropriate passenger distancing the buses are restricted to 10 passengers. You are advised to book ALL journeys in advance, or at least to book your return journeys with the driver before committing to the outward journey.  You are reminded that all passengers, without a special exemption, are requires to wear a face mask for entire time they are in the bus. 

Further Afield - 

Buses Traveline has closed. Good starting point for buses finding out about other bus travel are the maps in http://www.essexbus.info/map.html and https://www.suffolkonboard.com  Also useful is the free UK Bus Checker App. (All three show the F315, but click on our time table to check the times and regulations)

Trains All local trains are run by Greater Anglia.  www.greateranglia.co.uk/

Central London All routes are via Witham and Chelmsford. Change onto the Underground at Stratford or Liverpool Street.
Take hourly train from Sudbury, change at Marks Tey, just under 2 hours, or Bus from Halstead to Braintree, then hourly through train, just over 2 hours.
or the 4 per hour train from Witham about 1 hour.
Colchester and stations beyond Take the hourly train from Sudbury and change at Marks Tey. The slow train from Ipswich and Bury St E to Peterborough gives access to the midlands and north avoiding London.

Steve Bolter, Parish Council public transport rep.October 2020