Coronavirus - COVID19: Service information
We are doing everything we can to ensure you can travel with confidence and, we have put measures in place to keep our customers safe when travelling on our buses. People should continue to follow public health measures to protect one another. Government guidance in England ⇒
Journey Cancellations
As we welcome more colleagues to the business, we have been able to reintroduce all journeys in South Essex (except route X10 between Basildon to Chelmsford) and have been able to limit the number of daily cancellations to a few routes in Chelmsford. www.firstbus.co.uk/essex/plan-journey/timetables/journey-cancellations
Current Timetables
Here’s a guide for when you get on board:
Wearing masks: At First Bus, the health, safety and comfort of our colleagues and customers are always front and centre. In England, Government guidelines (from January 27th) suggest the ongoing use of face coverings in crowded places where you come into contact with people you don’t normally meet.
Customers may therefore choose to continue to wear a face covering on board our buses, especially when services are busy. We encourage everyone to respect their fellow passengers and look out for one another.
Ventilation & Cleaning: We will continue to ensure that all windows are left open for additional ventilation in addition to our enhanced cleaning regime which will remain in place to keep you and others around you safe.
Social distancing: In England all seats will be in use from Monday 19th July 2021 and our buses will return to full capacity making sure we can take you to where you need to go.
Paying for your journey:
Where possible avoid the use of cash and continue to use contactless on board or buy in advance using our mobile app.
First Bus App: Not only can you buy your tickets in advance, but you can plan your journey, check live bus times and track your bus live on a map. You can see how far the bus is from your stop and how many seats are free. If you haven't already got it you can download it here. ⇒
Pay Contactless: To avoid handling cash, go contactless and pay either with a contactless card, Google or Apple Pay.
Tap&Cap: Tap&Cap uses contactless payments to cap your travel charges so you will never pay more than the price of a day ticket or week ticket, no matter how many journeys you make. If you’re heading back to the office, whether that’s full time or only a couple of days a week,Tap&Cap means you only pay for the travel you’ll use. Find out more about Tap&Cap in your local area here >>
We’re here for you
Contact us by phone 0345 646 0707 (8am to 6pm Monday to Friday) or contact us via Twitter @FirstEssex (7am to 7pm Monday to Friday or 9am to 5pm on weekends and bank holidays).
Journey planner

Welcome to our Journey Planner where we can help you plan your journey from A to B!
Network maps

Find first bus routes in Colchester, Chelmsford and beyond,
Customer Care

Find details of how to get in touch.
Ticket prices

Essex Bus Ticket Prices Here at First Essex, we have every kind of ticket to suit your journey.