Coronavirus - COVID19: Service information

Each step of the government roadmap out of lockdown brings us closer to getting back to the things we love.

Social distancing and face coverings are still required.

Service changes from Sunday 16th May 2021

From Sunday 16th May 2021, we are making some changes to our services across Essex.

Our Essex Airlink services X10 and X30 will be increasing back to their normal hourly frequencies and the Chelmer Valley Park and Ride site in Chelmsford will be reopening. We will also be running more buses on a Saturday evening on service 27 between Canvey and Southend, and on Sundays in Colchester on service 64.

In addition to this, a number of services will have some timing changes to improve punctuality.

Download the service change summary

SOUTH ESSEX		What's Changed?
20	Southend to Hullbridge	Minor changes to the timetable on Mondays to Fridays to improve reliability
21, 21B	Southend to Canvey Newlands	Minor changes to the timetable on Mondays to Fridays and Saturdays to improve reliability
25	Southend to Basildon	Minor changes to the timetable on Saturdays to improve reliability
27, 27A, 27X	Southend to Canvey, Leigh Beck	On Saturday evenings buses will now run every 30 minutes instead of every 60 minutes
100	Lakeside to Chelmsford via Basildon	Minor timetable changes in the mornings on Mondays to Fridays to improve reliability
X10	Basildon to Stansted Airport	Buses will return to running every hour and, when combined with route X30 between Chelmsford and Stansted Airport buses will run every 30 minutes

CHELMSFORD & MID ESSEX		What's Changed?
31, 31A, 31B, 31C, 31D, 31X	Chelmsford to Burnham-on-Crouch	On Sundays an additional route 31x journey will run at 1548 from Chelmsford to Maldon
42, 42A, 42B, S42A, S42B	Galleywood to Broomfield Hopsital / Stansted Airport (42A) / Braintree (42B)	Certain journeys on Mondays to Fridays will extend to and from Chelmsford to Braintree replacing journeys on route 70 with minor adjustement to times between Chelmsford and Galleywood. An additional journey will also run on Sunday evenings from Galleywood to Broomfield Hospital
45, 45A	Writtle to Moulsham Lodge	An additional journey on scholars only route S45 will leave Moulsham Lodge at 0804 on Schooldays
70	Chelmsford to Colchester via Braintree	Certain journeys between Chelmsford and Braintree are replaced by journeys on route 42B and minor changes to other journeys to imporve reliability on Mondays to Fridays
71, 71A, 71B, 71C, 71D, 71X, 72	Chelmsford to Colchester via Witham	On Mondays to Fridays the 0835 journey from Colchester to Chelmsford will leave at 0830 and run 5 minutes earlier throughout
Chelmsford P&R	Sandon-Chelmer Valley Park & Ride	The Chelmer Valley Park and Ride Site will be reopening with buses running every 20 minutes at peak times on Mondays to Fridays and every 30 minutes during the day and all day on Saturdays. From Sandon Park and Ride site will have buses running every 10 minutes during the busiest times on Mondays to Fridays and every 15 minutes during the day and all day on Saturdays
X30	Southend to Stansted Airport	Buses will return to running every hour and, when combined with route X10 between Chelmsford and Stansted Airport buses will run every 30 minutes

COLCHESTER & NORTH ESSEX		What's Changed?
61	Highwoods to Wivenhoe	New timetables at weekends to improve the reliability of the route
62, 62B	Colchester North to Brightlingsea	On Mondays to Fridays an additional journey will run from Brightlingsea at 0830 and from Colchester at 1535 with minor changes to route 62B on Sundays to improve reliability
64, 64A	Greenstead to Shrub End / St Michaels	On Sundays buses will run every 20 minutes and also run later in to the evening in response to customer demand
65	Highwoods to Stanway Tollgate	New timetables on all days of the week to improve reliability
67, 67B, 68	Colchester to West Mersea	New timetable on Mondays to Fridays with additional journeys from Lethe Grove to Colchester in the morning and an additional journey on Saturday evening from West Mersea
75, 75A	Colchester to Maldon	New timetables on Mondays to Fridays to improve the reliability of the routes
102, 103, 104	Colchester to Harwich	New timetables on Mondays to Fridays to improve the reliability of the routes

Click here for the current Timetables: Or go to Plan a journey > Timetables

Click here for 'Forthcoming' Timetables: Or go to Plan a journey > Timetables > Forthcoming

We’ve got each stage of your journey covered so that you can arrive safely at your destination.

Before you travel

Use the First Bus App to journey plan and buy your ticket
Use our Space Checker tool to find when your bus is less busy
Please bring a face covering as it is mandatory to wear onboard at all times, unless you are exempt. Click here for exemptions
Social distancing limits the bus capacity to 50%, so please allow additional time for your journey during peak times
Bring hand sanitiser
We encourage our customers to download the NHS COVID19 App

At the bus stop

Use the First Bus App to track where your bus is and the number of free seats available
Please social distance from other passengers waiting too.
Put on your face covering before you board the bus, it is a legal requirement unless you are exempt
When your bus arrives, please allow space for passengers to leave the bus before you step onboard
Get you payment method ready – mTicket on the First Bus App , contactless card, concessionary pass or the exact change

On board

We encourage customers to make cashless payments to avoid cash handling
It is a legal requirement to wear a face covering, unless you are exempt otherwise you could be fined up to £200.
Please follow the social distancing sashes to show you where to sit
Our windows need to remain open to maintain airflow
To assist others less mobile, please sit upstairs on double deckers
We have increased our cleaning regime, but please help by not eating or drinking on board and remove any rubbish when you leave

We’re here for you

Contact us by phone 0345 646 0707 (9am to 5pm Monday to Friday) or contact us via Twitter @FirstEssex (7am to 7pm Monday to Friday or 9am to 5pm on weekends and bank holidays).

NHS Test & Trace App

Supporting the national effort with the NHS Test & Trace App:

We would like to encourage all passengers travelling with us to download the NHS Covid-19 Track and Trace app. Anyone aged 16 or over who lives in England or Wales can use the app. The app allows you to report symptoms, order a Coronavirus test and check into venues.

How do I access them?

Both of these apps are designed to help us protect each other and reduce the spread of coronavirus.

The England and Wales NHS COVID-19 app is free to download from the App Store and Google Play.

Safety Measures on First Buses

Please watch our videos for information and advice for travelling on the bus during the coronavirus situation:
	Travel safely on our buses: Video ⇒
	Face coverings: Video ⇒
	First Bus App: Know where your bus is and how many seats are available: Video ⇒

For important extra information please see here:
Face coverings information ⇒	Guidance from First Bus about who does and does not need to wear a face covering on our buses, and the rules that apply.
Government guidance ⇒	Official UK government coronavirus guidance and support page. Comprehensive guidance on living in the UK during the coronavirus outbreak, with guidance, support, statistics and announcements.
Risk Assessment ⇒	First Bus Covid 19 Risk assessment

Coronavirus - COVID19: Service information

Service changes from Sunday 16th May 2021

SOUTH ESSEX

What's Changed?

CHELMSFORD & MID ESSEX

What's Changed?

COLCHESTER & NORTH ESSEX

What's Changed?

NHS Test & Trace App

Safety Measures on First Buses

For important extra information please see here:

Current issues

Planned changes

News