Man and van in Romford
The last stop in London before Essex: a market town with a one-way ring road in the middle and driveways on most of the streets around it.
Covering Romford town centre, Hornchurch, Upminster, Collier Row, Rainham and Gidea Park.
Man and van in Romford, where the A12 and A127 begin
Havering's main town is as far east as London goes. The A12 and the A127 Southend Arterial both start here, and junction 28 of the M25 is minutes away. That makes moves out into Essex very quick.
Central London is the opposite: a long run, and longer still in the morning peak. Moving into town? Pick a later slot, so the hours you book go on moving, not queueing.
One busy middle, with Havering's quieter streets around it
The postcodes are RM1, RM2, RM3, RM5, RM7, RM11, RM12 and RM14. Between them they take in Romford town centre, Hornchurch, Upminster, Collier Row, Rainham and Gidea Park.
For planning, one split matters. Inside the town centre you get flats, a one-way system and a market. Everywhere else, the van can usually stop close to your door.
Station blocks, Emerson Park detached houses and semis with drives
Town-centre homes are mostly flats. Newer blocks built around the station for the Elizabeth line have loading bays and lifts to book.
Gidea Park and Emerson Park have larger detached houses on wider plots. House removals on that scale mean more to carry.
Elsewhere, Hornchurch and Upminster included, it is mostly interwar and post-war semis and terraces, most with a driveway or space in front. Say so when you book.
The ring road, three market days and plenty of driveways
Away from the centre, parking is generally easy: most streets are unrestricted and driveways are common. The centre is where a move needs planning.
- The one-way ring road
- Timed loading only, so the van must be loaded inside the permitted hours
- Market days on Wednesday, Friday and Saturday, when the centre slows further
- Lift and bay bookings at the newer blocks near the station
Why Essex is quick from Romford and central London is not
Direction matters. A move out along the A12 or the A127, or onto the M25 at junction 28, spends little time on the road. A move into central London spends far more, especially from a morning-peak start.
Loading comes next. A town-centre flat, with timed loading and a lift to book, needs more planning than a house with a driveway in Upminster.
Whether you need a man with a van for a few pieces or full removals in Romford, those two things set the hours: the road out, and the loading at each end.
- Market days are Wednesday, Friday and Saturday; the town centre is slowest then.
- The ring road is one-way with timed loading only.
- The A127 and M25 junction 28 make moves out to Essex quick on time.
- Most Hornchurch and Upminster homes have a driveway: mention it when you book.
Congestion Charge and ULEZ in Romford
You are a long way outside the Congestion Charge zone here, so a local move or one out to Essex adds nothing. It only matters if the van has to go into the zone at the other end.
ULEZ and any charge are in the driver’s price. How pricing works
What a move from Romford costs
Moving in Romford: your questions
It is one of the harder ones. Saturday is a market day, like Wednesday and Friday, on top of timed loading on the ring road. Monday, Tuesday or Thursday avoids the market.
Book the loading bay and the lift, then give your driver the times.
Usually. The A12, the A127 and the M25 are all close, so the drive east is short, and fewer hours on the road means a smaller bill.