Coronavirus information
Page updated: 12/04/2021
It is the law that unless you have an exemption, you must wear a face covering for your entire journey when travelling on public transport.
As lockdown restrictions start to lift we want to keep our focus firmly on keeping all of our customers and colleagues safe while travelling with us. All of our safety measures are in place to keep you protected and ensure we are following government guidance.
Wearing masks
It is a legal requirement to wear a mask when using public transport. Unless you are exempt in-line with the government guidance, please ensure a face covering is worn for the entire journey and that it covers your nose and mouth to help stop the spread of the coronavirus.
Government guidance in England ⇒
Government guidance in Wales ⇒
Government guidance in Scotland ⇒
Cashless payments
Please do not pay with cash, help to keep us all safe and limit the spread of the virus. Alternative ways to pay include:
- First Bus App: Not only can you buy your tickets in advance, but you can plan your journey, check live bus times, track your bus and check live seat capacity. 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. More details here. ⇒
Please see here for the latest timetable and service information in your area ⇒
We’ve got each stage of your journey covered so that you can arrive safely at your destination:
Before you travel
- Minimise the number of journeys you make where possible. This means you should:
- Avoid making unnecessary trips
- Combine trips where possible 
Download the First Bus app. With great travel features to help you move confidently, including buying an mTicket so you don't need to use cash on the bus, journey planning, real-time information and seat availability ⇒
- Where possible, please wash your hands before and after travelling and we advise you to bring your own hand sanitiser with you.
If you are flexible on travel times, use our Space Checker tool ⇒ which allows you to plan ahead to see when your favourite bus stop and service is usually less busy.
- Social distancing measures are in place on our buses, this means we can only carry 50% of the normal
bus capacity. Where possible we have increased services to meet travel demand but there might be times where the bus has reached its new capacity, and you might see a "Bus Full" sign. So, please allow plenty of time for your journey and be prepared to wait.
Please don’t forget your face covering for your journey (unless exempt). It is a legal requirement to wear a face covering which needs to cover your mouth and nose and must remain in place for the entire journey until you have left the bus.
- Information regarding face covering exemptions in England ⇒
For face covering exemptions in Scotland ⇒
For face covering exemptions in Wales ⇒
- If you are exempt from wearing a face covering please be prepared to inform your driver or show a Sunflower lanyard or our journey assistance card: Extra help to Travel Card ⇒
- We encourage all customers in England and Wales to download the NHS COVID-19 app ⇒ and all customers in Scotland to download the Protect Scotland app ⇒ from NHS Scotland’s Test & Protect. Both apps are free to download from the App Store and Google Play.
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At the bus stop
- Why not use the First Bus app ⇒ to track where your bus is, and reduce the amount of time you’re waiting at the bus stop.
You can also see how many seats are available on the bus so that you’re confident there is plenty of space to travel, or if you are not time restricted you may wish to catch a later bus which is less busy.
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- When waiting at the stop, please ensure you socially distance from other passengers waiting too.
- Face coverings must be worn on our buses unless exempt, otherwise you could be fined. For details of exemptions in your area please see the FAQ’s below.
- When the bus arrives, please allow time and space for passengers to leave the bus before you step onboard.
- If you are waiting at a bus stop and the bus drives past, it might have reached its reduced seating capacity. If the bus does stop, but is near capacity, the driver will only allow one person to board for every person that gets off, so you make sure to allow extra time for your journey and be prepared to wait. With the latest version of the First Bus App you can now track your bus live on a map and it also displays how many seats are available on each bus.
- Get your bus ticket or payment ready, whether it’s activating your mTicket, having your concessionary pass or contactless card out or ensuring you have the right change. It all helps speed up boarding and minimise the time with your driver making it safer for everyone.
On board
- Face coverings must be worn on our buses and throughout the journey unless exempt, otherwise you could be fined. For details of exemptions in your area please see the FAQ’s below.
Please do not pay with cash.
We encourage passengers to make cashless payments to avoid cash handling. If you need to use cash, we would be very grateful if you could provide the correct fare for your journey as no change is given (certain operating areas only):
In Glasgow, West Lothian and Aberdeen we operate our services on an exact fare, no change given basis.
- Please follow the social distancing sashes and stickers that have been added to the seats to show you where you can sit and help maintain social distancing. If the bus has few passengers on board, we ask that you spread yourself out on the vehicle to give everyone as much space as possible.
- To assist those less mobile, on double deck vehicles please sit upstairs if possible when spaces are limited.
- Even if temperatures are low it's really important that windows on the bus remain open to assist air flow. If you get on the bus and notice a window has been closed, please open it to help us maintain this.
- Please refrain from eating or drinking on board and please take any rubbish with you to assist with keeping our buses as clean as possible.
We’ve increased on-bus cleaning, particularly regular disinfection of touch points such as handrails, poles and window handles. For more details on our enhanced cleaning programme, please see below.
FAQs
Our drivers may not be wearing a face covering or mask while driving as this can be distracting, particularly for those who wear glasses, as there is a risk these get steamed up while driving. The cab has a protective screen to separate the driver and passengers. If a driver is required to leave their cab to assist a passenger, a face covering will be worn. Our drivers will advise customers wherever possible but they cannot enforce social distancing measures. Please note the seating measures we have introduced are advisory for customers and we will not be asking our drivers to enforce them or leave their cab area, unless operating the manual bus ramp. Our driver will help advise customers when boarding where seats are available. It is the law that unless you have an exemption, you must wear a face covering for your entire journey when travelling on public transport. The driver cannot enforce this but you may be liable to a fixed penalty notice if you refuse. Exemptions for the use of face coverings will apply to those with certain health conditions, disabled people and children under the age of 11 (in England and Wales) or under 5 (in Scotland). Children under the age of 3 should not wear face coverings. To see the government guidance on face covering exemptions please follow these links: Information regarding face covering exemptions in England ⇒ If you are exempt from wearing a face covering please be prepared to inform your driver or show a Sunflower lanyard or our journey assistance card: Extra help to Travel Card ⇒ Yes, and with operators and customers working together we will provide a bus network, that is safe and allows everyone to complete their journeys. In line with UK Government advice, we are continuing with the systematic daily deep cleaning of our vehicles and facilities and screens are fitted to all cabs, separating drivers from passengers. Drivers also have access to gloves and hand sanitiser and all staff are encouraged to wash their hands regularly. To help with this we are asking our customers to: We’re running near to100%, so there is already a full network to serve customers, and social distancing means that some journeys can be very busy or sometimes full. It’s best to plan using the First Bus App ⇒ to track live seat capacity and Spacechecker ⇒ to choose quieter travel times. Our buses are comprehensively cleaned every night by our expert team of cleaners, including regular disinfection of all grab rails and poles, entrance door handles, window ledges and other touchpoints. Virucidal detergents are used. We use a long-lasting sanitising treatment (Zoono Z71) on all buses and depots, which kills germs on surfaces. It is environmentally-friendly, uses no alcohol or dangerous chemicals, and is proven to be a highly effective antimicrobial surface sanitiser. We are also encouraging good hand hygiene amongst all our staff and providing personal protective equipment such as gloves and hand sanitiser to all our drivers. The Check-in process as part of the track&trace App is designed to look for clusters in post code areas. Because buses move across areas, the data collected wouldn’t be valid. Support for disabled passengers remains the same as before coronavirus, see here for more details ⇒ We offer our full support to wheelchair users who want to travel with us. While some of our seats are blocked with signs or tape, our wheelchair spaces remain available. All our buses have a dedicated area for wheelchair users; other passengers are required to give up the space for wheelchair users. Please ask the driver for assistance if you require any help. If the driver needs to leave their cab to provide passenger assistance they will wear a face covering. Wheelchair users have priority over everyone else for the use of the designated wheelchair space, since this is the only place in which they can travel safely.
For face covering exemptions in Scotland ⇒
For face covering exemptions in Wales ⇒
We're here for you
Please tell us if you are concerned that our service changes since COVID-19 don't meet your travel needs: key worker feedback ⇒
We’re absolutely committed to being there for our customers and you can contact us by phone on 0345 646 0707 between 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday and we're available on Twitter 7am until 7pm Monday to Friday, and 9am-5pm weekends and bank holidays. Please see our Help and Support page for contact details.
Keeping you updated
To help us communicate quickly and easily with you, register your details with us here:
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Further Travel Advice and Guidance |
| First Bus Covid 19 Risk assessment ⇒ |
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Thank you for your continued support.
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Face coverings
Page updated: 29/03/2021 As lockdown restrictions start to lift, we want to keep our focus firmly on keeping all of our customers and colleagues safe while travelling with us.
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