News

Stagecoach are changing social distancing on buses in the South East

As lockdown restrictions continue to ease and more people are travelling Stagecoach have reviewed their seating guidance so they can safely carry more passengers.

There will be posters and signage onboard the bus to help you find where to sit. Once on board you’ll be able to sit:

• One person per double seat
• Leave the seat behind and next to someone empty
• Only sit with somebody if they’re in your household or bubble.

See below example plans so that you can see the zig zag seating arrangement:

We know you’ve got lots of questions so we’ve put together some answers relating to this new process when travelling on our services.

Q Why is it safe now to sit so close to others on the bus?

A With the virus now more controlled, the alert level has been reduced and there has been a relaxation of social distancing measures across other sectors in England. Now that everyone who can is wearing a face covering on board it was time for us to make a few changes. Along with other public transport operators, we’ve done a risk assessment which means one person can now sit on each double seat, in a zig-zag formation. This will allow more people to safely travel on our services.

Q I haven’t seen this in the Government guidelines, is this allowed?

A In line with the reduced risk level, the Government has relaxed social distancing measures across a wide range of sectors and worked with individual sectors to apply the new measures to that industry. We’ve consulted with government and The Confederation of Passenger Transport UK (CPT) that this change in social distancing on board public transport is allowed and is necessary to help get the country moving again.

Q What if the person in front of or behind me isn’t wearing a face covering?

A There will be people who aren’t wearing face coverings because they’re exempt for various reasons so please remember to be kind. If you feel uncomfortable sitting in front of or behind them, choose a seat further away or across the aisle.

10-steps to staying safe when you travel:

1. Plan ahead, allow extra time for your journey and try to travel at off-peak times, where possible.

2. Wear a face covering. 

3. Use contactless, smartphone, smartcard, or  have the exact change.

4. Buses will have limited capacity. If your bus has a BUS FULL sign please be prepared to wait for the next bus.

5. Let people off the bus before you get on. Be considerate of the impact of restrictions on the needs of fellow passengers who may have impairments, disabilities or mobility issues.

6. Keep a safe social distance from others, at the bus stop and on board.

7. Only one person can sit on a double seat, unless you’re with a member of your household or bubble.

8. Leave the seat next to you or behind someone empty.

9. Don’t stand on the bus.

10. Wash or sanitise your hands before and after your journey.

Stagecoach are increasing more of their services in the South East from Monday 29th June 2020

Stagecoach thanks all of their customers who have given valuable feedback in recent weeks.

They have listened to this and made changes where they can to bring services back to the communities of Kent and East Sussex.

The services changing on the 29th June 2020 include:

• Ashford; 2, A, B, C, D & AD.

Please note that timetables are being updated more frequently than usual at this time, so please check the latest temporary timetables below before you travel:

Temporary timetables >

As more people return to work, to help keep everyone safe the number of seats available on buses has been reduced to promote social distancing.

Please plan ahead and avoid the busiest times of day if you can and see below our 10-steps to travelling safely at this time.

1. Plan ahead, allow extra time for your journey and try to travel at off-peak times, where possible.
2. You must wear a face covering.
3. Use contactless to pay or have the correct change.
4. Buses will have limited capacity. If your bus has a BUS FULL sign please be prepared to wait for the next bus.
5. Let people off the bus before you get on.
6. Keep a safe social distance from others, 2m apart where possible – at the bus stop and on board.
7. Sit in the window seat, leaving the seats in front and behind you empty and don’t sit directly behind the driver.
8. Only one person can sit on a double seat, unless you’re with a member of your household.
9. Don’t stand on the bus.
10. Wash or sanitise your hands before and after your journey.

Stagecoach are increasing some services across the South East from 1st June 2020

From Monday 1st June there’ll be a phased uplift in bus services. At first this will be on some of the busier routes in Kent, but as government lock-down restrictions ease, you will begin to see more buses return to service in other parts of the South East.

The services changing on the 1st June 2020 include:

Ashford routes; 1/1A, 2A, 10X, 11, 111, 123 & 666

Thanet routes; 8/8X, 48, 48A, Loop

Dover routes; 61 (evenings), 90 & 15

Please note that timetables are being updated more frequently than usual at this time, so please check our latest temporary timetables below before you travel:

Temporary timetables

10-steps to staying safe when you travel:

1. Plan ahead, allow extra time for your journey and try to travel at off-peak times, where possible.
2. Wear a face covering if you can.
3. Use contactless to pay or have the correct change.
4. Buses will have limited capacity. If your bus has a BUS FULL sign please be prepared to wait for the next bus.
5. Let people off the bus before you get on.
6. Keep a safe social distance from others, 2m apart where possible – at the bus stop and on board.
7. Sit in the window seat, leaving the seats in front and behind you empty and don’t sit directly behind the driver.
8. Only one person can sit on a double seat, unless you’re with a member of your household.
9. Don’t stand on the bus.
10. Wash or sanitise your hands before and after your journey.

As more people return to work, to help keep everyone safe we have reduced the number of seats available on our buses to promote social distancing. Please plan ahead and avoid the busiest times of day if you can and see below our 10-steps to travelling safely at this time.

Stagecoach UK Bus 30 May 2020
https://www.stagecoachbus.com/promos-and-offers/south-east/government-coronavirus-measures–changes-to-bus-services
https://www.stagecoachbus.com/promos-and-offers/national/covid-19-travelling-safely

To serve key workers who need to travel on May Bank Holiday (Monday 25th May), Stagecoach will be running their current Monday to Saturday service on most routes.

There are a few routes that will not operate on Monday 25th May:

Route 649 in Canterbury will not operate
Route 93 in the Dover area will not operate
Routes 312 and 313 to and from Rye will not operate
Routes 95, 96 and 97 in the Bexhill area will not operate

Route 5 in Seasalter will be operated by Regent, view Regent timetable

For more details of these and the current timetables in place across the South East, see below:

Temporary timetables