Most public transport in London makes burning money look like sound investment practice. The buses are actually quite reasonable, but they can still take forever to get anywhere. The same goes for the whole public transport system, actually, but that’s partly because London is just so damn big.

The sheer size of the place also makes walking impractical for a journey even a relatively small way across town. As for cycling, again the distances are a challenge and, if you survive the traffic and the fumes, you may just make it to your destination.

As you probably know, even if you’re not a Londoner, public transport consists mainly of the Underground (‘the Tube’) and buses - be it the controversial (as in people thought they were rubbish) bendy buses or double deckers. There are also overground trains and other smaller networks like the Docklands Light Railway, Thameslink and the River buses (which are boats that hardly anyone uses). Students can get 30% off bus passes and travelcards by flashing a valid photocard. Get a form from your university, see www.tfl.gov.uk or call 0845 330 9876.

Using the pre-pay Oyster Card gets you cheaper single fares and cuts down the time you have to spend at congested ticket booths.

There’s a whole pack of travelcards for buses, Tubes and trains (many of these can be easily loaded onto an Oyster Card, though not all overland train stations are in on the shellfish act). They’re for different people, for different periods of time and even for different modes of transport (you can, for example, get passes for buses only, which won’t set you back more than a few quid).

Most importantly, they’re for different zones. Zone-wise, London is split into concentric rings with a circle in the centre. The circle is Zone 1 and the rings going out are Zones 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6. If you only need to travel within a single zone, travel is relatively cheap, but cross the line and prices start climbing. Unfortunately most of the universities in London aren’t in residential areas (or not areas that students can afford) and it can be tough balancing the cost saved from cheaper accommodation with the cost of getting from there to college and back again every day.

For example, a monthly Travelcard for Zones 1 (where most of London University’s buildings are) to Zone 3 (where the rents are more likely to be student-friendly) would set you back £109.10 – or £76.37 with a Student Card.

Don’t be tempted to resort to black taxis or minicabs. You could easily blow your weekly travel budget on one trip. Even late at night, you shouldn’t have to. The night bus network – although interminably slow and full of drunk teenagers (as well as drunk students) – will get you home eventually.

Money aside, there’s a big safety no-no with illegal minicabs. Getting into an unlicensed taxi is about as dangerous as jumping into a locked vehicle with a complete stranger – in fact, that’s exactly what you’re doing and you have no guarantee that the driver has a valid driving licence and insurance, is sober and isn’t going to try to rob or hurt you. Never, ever, ever hop into one if you’re with fewer than two other people. Ideally, never hop into one at all.

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