Braintree (Essex)

Braintree is a town in Essex, England. For a town of its size it boasts very few amenities. However, a shopping village on the outskirts, 'Freeport', has roughly 80 shops. It mainly specialise in clothing, along with a bowling alley and a cinema, which makes Braintree worth visiting.

Understand
The town has expanded to include neighbouring settlements (the 2011 population of Braintree town was 41,634 whilst the population of the urban area was 53,477). The town lies on the River Brain and south of Stane Street whilst Bocking lies on the River Blackwater to the north. Sometimes the two area is referred to as Braintree & Bocking although they form a single urban area.

The town dates back to habitation in the Bronze and Iron Ages. Later the settlement was used by the Saxons after the Romans left. The town was recorded in the Doomsday Book then called Branchetreu. By the 14th century the town was manufacturing woollen cloth and by the 17th century Flemish immigrants contributed to this making the town famous and bringing prosperity. In the 19th century silk manufacture replaced wool and the town benefitted from a rail link to London.

By car
Getting into Braintree by road is easy. The main roads in and out of Braintree are the A120 and A131. Using the A120 you can travel to Braintree from the M11 or From Colchester, Using the A131 you can approach from the Chelmsford or Sudbury direction. It is also possible to exit the A12 road at Witham and 15 minutes further to Braintree.

Braintree is also ideally suited for those who are intending to drive to or from Stansted airport as is located about 15 min by car away on the A120 dual carriageway towards the M11.

By bus
Braintree is served frequently by buses from Chelmsford, Stansted Airport, only 20 min away, and Colchester among other routes. There are also other smaller bus services for the smaller surrounding towns and villages.

By bicycle
The town in on National Cycle Route 16 Bishop's Stortford to Southend-on-Sea, passing through Great Dunmow 11 miles to the W and through Witham 8 miles to the SE (just beyond which it joins National Cycle Route 1 and the National Cycle Network.

Get around
Braintree is small enough to get away with walking everywhere: although the lazier ones will be pleased to know that there is a fairly reliable bus service that can get you around most parts of the town.

See

 * "Bocking end" Down this area of braintree some old houses still remain. Though modernised slightly, they still have the traditional Tudor black wooded beams. While exploring this area of Braintree which is quite small, why not pop into "Hogs" at the bottom of the hill or "The Angel" for a quick pint.
 * "Bocking end" Down this area of braintree some old houses still remain. Though modernised slightly, they still have the traditional Tudor black wooded beams. While exploring this area of Braintree which is quite small, why not pop into "Hogs" at the bottom of the hill or "The Angel" for a quick pint.
 * "Bocking end" Down this area of braintree some old houses still remain. Though modernised slightly, they still have the traditional Tudor black wooded beams. While exploring this area of Braintree which is quite small, why not pop into "Hogs" at the bottom of the hill or "The Angel" for a quick pint.

Buy
The usual range of high street stores can be found in the town centre.

Eat
Finding a place to eat in Braintree should not be a hard task: the town centre is littered with pubs and sandwich bars which cater for a range of needs.

If you are looking for more of an evening meal you have to travel towards the outskirts of the town, Where you will find Freeport. This contains about 7 restaurants each catering for different needs, many of these franchises so you will have a rough idea of what you are likely to get.

Towards Galleys corner you can find fast food restaurants, a Pizza Hut, and Frankie and Benny's. Just across the road Fowlers Farm is a warm friendly pub which serves popular food also.

Along Cressing Road is an Indian/Turkish venue that serves a variety of tasty dishes.

Freeport Shopping Village has a number of fast food outlets.

Avoid Braintree after 5PM on a Saturday as it starts to resemble the set of Michael Jackson's "Thriller", and men and women with tattoos of family members names on their bingo wings start to congregate.

Connect
Braintree and its approach roads have 4G from all UK carriers. As of Feb 2023, 5G has not reached town.

Go next
The local bus service can take people to nearby towns and villages. One of the main bus services is the number 70 by First Essex which connects Colchester and Chelmsford and passes through Braintree bus park every 30 minutes in each direction.

Braintree's train line is a spur off of the national service, and all trains leaving will be heading for London, The frequency of these trains is once every hour. Trains take about 45 min to reach London stopping at various stops along the way. Those wishing to head further up the main line towards Colchester, Ipswich, Clacton, etc., can change at Witham.