Suffolk Travel & Transport

The transport system in the county of Suffolk offers visitors a number of ways to get around from public transport such as buses and trains to using the road with car hire, coaches and ferries.

Buses
Local bus services in Suffolk provide services to local areas including market towns across the county, with a number of routes covering the county town of Ipswich and local towns including Lowestoft, Bury St Edmunds, Felixstowe, Carlton Colville, Woodbridge, Beccles, Sudbury and Newmarket.

Details of local bus services and further information can be found at Suffolk Buses


Trains
Trains in Suffolk serve a number of routes across the county and to other areas. There are several mainline rail routes offering local and regional services. Ipswich Station is on the Great Eastern Main Line route and has services to London Liverpool Street station with a journey time of just over 1 hour. There are local services to Lowestoft, Stowmarket and Bury St Edmunds and further to Cambridge, Norwich, Colchester and Stratford.

Train services are provided by Greater Anglia

Other railway stations in Suffolk include Melton, Felixstowe, Westerfield, Wickham Market, Stowmarket and Beccles.

For more information please see National Rail Enquiries


Public Transport Safety Tips
Most journeys on public transport go ahead without incident, in order to minimise the chances of any incidents, passengers may wish to consider the following safety tips:

- Be aware of your belongings at all times.
- Do not leave your bags and belongings unattended at any time.
- Stay alert and aware of your environment and those around you.
- Do not show valuables including money and jewellery in public.
- If you are carrying a bag/handbag, ensure you use a bag that has a strong good quality strap and wear it across your shoulder (not on your shoulder), with the pockets closed facing towards your waist. Carrying the bag on your shoulder makes it much easier for criminals to snatch the bag or cut the strap.
- Be careful and cautious in crowds and beware of pickpockets, do not leave anything valuable showing in public including wallets in back trouser pockets.
- Sit in carriages with other passengers do not sit in carriages with no/fewer passengers.
- Try not to use smaller/isolated stations especially at night.
- When waiting for buses, trains, boats and taxis stand with other passengers in an area that is well lit, do not stand/wait in isolated areas.


Car
There are a number of car hire firms in Suffolk that offer car rental services for both short and longer term car hire offering a range of vehicles from small budget cars to family cars to larger mini-buses and luxury cars.

Suffolk is connected to the road network via the A12, A14 and A140, there are currently no motorways in the county. London to Ipswich by car via the A12 is a drive of approx 2 hours depending on traffic. Other major roads around Suffolk include the A11, A134 and A143.

Parking in Ipswich centre includes a number of pay and display and pay on exit car parks. Major car parks in the town centre include Cobden Place, Cromwell Square, Fore Street, Bond Street, Ipswich Village, Portman Road and South Street car parks.

For more information please see: Ipswich Parking

There are Park & Ride schemes in operation in Taunton at various sites including Silk Mills and Taunton Gateway where drivers can park in designated areas in the outskirts of the city centre and get a bus in to Taunton town centre. For more information please see: Ipswich Park & Ride

Drivers should note there may be driving restrictions in and around the city and town centres. It is recommended visitors ensure they fully understand the local parking rules before parking and help avoid unnecessary fines and worry.


Ferry
Norfolk’s location includes the East of England coastline making it convenient to use ferries to get to the county. DFDS Seaways offers services from Denmark to Harwich port in Essex. Harwich to Ipswich via the A137 is a car journey is approx 45 miles. Harwich International Port also has a train station where there are services towards Ipswich.

The south coast ports of Dover and Folkestone can both be used to get to the region from the European mainland, from Dover by car the route is via the M20, M25 and A12.


Coach
Suffolk is accessible by coach with regular coach services available to Suffolk from London Victoria coach station, the journey time from London to Ipswich is between 2 hours 24 minutes and 3 hours 15 minutes depending on the service, time of day & traffic. There are also services from London to Bury St Edmunds, Stowmarket, Lowestoft, Mildenhall, Stanton and Needham Market. Coach services are provided by National Express.

Whilst travelling by coach to Suffolk is usually more time consuming than using rail and road, it is usually more cost effective.


Air
Norwich Airport is located 50 miles from Ipswich with a journey time of 1 hour 15 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes, the airport caters for a number of local and European flights.

London Stansted Airport is located 50 miles west of Ipswich. Both Norwich and London Stansted airports are conveniently located for good access to the East Anglia region.

For more information on public transport in Suffolk including information on public transport and timetables please see: Suffolk Transport from Traveline East Anglia





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