On foot
The town centre is easily navigated on foot. The highstreet is fully pedestrianised and the two largest shopping malls have no vehicle access. Chelmsford benefits from being fairly flat and there are also good provisions for the disabled.
By taxi
There are many taxi firms available in the town and all are clearly marked, so never accept a ride from one that isn't. Nearly all are saloon cars although there are an increasing amount of black cabs available. Cars can be pre-booked or found at locations or 'ranks'. These are located at the station and along Market Road. In the evenings more surface, the most easily located being the Baddow Road rank, located outside Pizza Express at the bottom of the High Street. Cabs are rarely hailed from the street, as you are never too far from a rank and cars will generally be full if seen on the roads.
By bike
The Town Centre is not particularly bike-friendly and you will often be told of this by a local if you try and weave in and out of pedestrians! Cycling is prohibited in the high street itself and will result in a fine if you are over the age of 16, however there are many cycle routes too and from the town. Council initiatives have lead to more and more cycle racks installed in the town.
By car
Access into Chelmsford is very good although be prepared to wait in queues in the centre of town, particularly along Victoria Road and Parkway. Rush Hour is between 7-10AM and again from 4.30 - 7PM. The Park and Ride service has helped things, although on occasion it can take a while, especially in the late afternoon, to leave the town. There are plenty of car parks, costing between £2 and £8 for a day, however be careful about parking in some areas as traffic wardens are notorious in the town. If in doubt ask a local the best areas to get free parking.
By bus
The internal Bus service is very good although schedules are rarely stuck too. Most of the stops have electronic displays to show when the next bus is due so it is best to just turn up and see how long the wait is. Bear in mind that inside the Town limits most locations can be walked to inside an hour, however most shelters are pleasant enough and nearly all have seats. Average bus prices are between £1 and £3 for a return inside of the town. Almost all local services use small midi-buses which can only seat around 25 passengers so they can become crowded. If heading for a destination along one of the main arterial roads it's usually more comfortable and sometimes cheaper to take an interurban bus as they'll follow a more direct route, have larger often double-deck buses and charge lower fares; although they're less frequent. Fares are charged by distance and the driver usually can provide change for smaller bills. Return fares are generally better value than single fares, but are not transferable between operators e.g. a return ticket on a First service cannot be used on a Regal Busways service. Bus services can also take travellers as far as Stansted Airport and Colchester, although services are very slow and infrequent. There is even a direct service to Lakeside Shopping Centre called service 100 which calls via Billericay, Basildon, Stanford-Le-Hope and Grays. Service 100 buses come every 20 minutes on Monday to Saturday No Sunday service, but the journey between Chelmsford and Lakeside does take around 2 hours.