Country Living: Our Man in Arundel

This was my first weekend in Sussex without a car, having sold mine last Saturday and not replaced it. Fortunately, as I live in a town and not a tiny village, I was able to rely on public transport to take me to see my girlfriend.

One of the good things about having owned a relatively thirsty car - it may not have been a petrol guzzler but it certainly enjoyed generous swigs - is that I'd already started trusting the train to get me to around on occasions. Arundel has its own railway station (thanks, I'm told, to a previous Duke of Norfolk selling the land on the condition that every London train stopped there). Unfortunately Arundel isn't on the Brighton line... and I wanted a Brighton train.

So I had two choices. Walk to Arundel station, catch the train to nearby Ford and wait 30 minutes for a connection - or walk to Ford, which would take around 40 minutes. It wasn't raining, so I took the Ford option. I left home just before 3.30pm and was in Brighton for 4.40pm. Next came the train to Lewes, which got me there with time to walk into town and buy a coffee before the bus arrived. Finally, a brief walk in the rain and I'm with my girlfriend just after 6pm. Two-and-a-half hours to travel 30 miles. That would have been a disappointing result if I'd been cycling, although it seemed okay – and quite an adventure – at the time!

The good news is that I didn't get the opportunity to buy a train ticket. Ford's unmanned in the afternoon, there wasn't anyone at the exit in Lewes and no-one checked on the train. I saved £7.50, with the bus costing just £1.50. Excellent value, this public transport. So I treated myself to a bottle of wine with the money I'd saved.