Timetables & Routes

Site Map | Legal | Accessibility

How to Use the Bus

• Use our Destination List or Map of services to find the bus service you need to catch.
• Look up the time of your bus in the timetable, or call our travel centre on 0115 950 60 70 if you need any help planning your journey.
• On the day of travel, make your way to the bus stop, arriving about 5 minutes before the scheduled time.
• When the bus approaches, raise your arm to signal to the driver that you would like to get on. Make sure you give the driver plenty of notice, so that they have time to stop
• Once the bus has stopped, board the bus and either hold your card to the reader or place your money in the red coin box. Remember, NCT operates an exact fare policy and we do not give change on the bus.
• Take your ticket and find a seat, sit down, relax and enjoy your ride.
  
• When you want to get off the bus ring the bell so that the driver knows you want to alight.
  
• Once the bus has stopped, you can get off , having arrived safely at your destination.

Wheelchair and Pushchair Guidance

All new buses built since 31 December 2000 have to meet stringent safety criteria to allow a wheelchair on board the bus. Legally, all buses in the UK must be wheelchair complaint by 2017. Nottingham City Transport (NCT) has invested many millions of pounds in new accessible buses to provide one of the most modern and accessible bus fleets in the country. Currently, 85% of all our buses can accommodate a wheelchair and we are aiming to be fully accessible 5 years ahead of the legislative deadline.

The law has determined that buses must have a bay to accommodate a “standard reference wheelchair” which has a maximum width of 700mm, a length of 1200mm, sitting height of 1350mm and footrest of 150mm. If your wheelchair exceeds these dimensions, the bus will not be able to carry you safely. Electric wheelchairs are classed in the same way as manual wheelchairs, although please ensure batteries are covered.

Unfolded pushchairs can be also accommodated on all of these buses as well as older low floor buses which were built before the December 2000 deadline. Every NCT bus route is pushchair friendly.

Mobility Scooters are not allowed on buses.

The following offers guidance to pushchair and wheelchair users when travelling by bus:

1. To help plan your journey, we have started including a pushchair and wheelchair logo on all our timetables to show what type of bus the route operates with. We have followed Department for Transport guidance and allocated the same types of buses to the same routes, to give you confidence in knowing which routes you are able to travel on.

2. NCT is committed to running accessible buses as advertised, but may on some occasions have to deploy a different type of bus in emergency situations, such as vandalism or vehicle breakdowns.

3. We have tested every bus in our fleet with pushchairs and wheelchairs to determine the maximum number each bus can safely carry at any one time. You will find the maximum number of pushchairs and wheelchairs allowed are shown near the entrance door of all buses. For health and safety reasons, buses cannot carry more than the maximum shown. A “double buggy” is classed as 2 pushchairs.

4. The bays are available to all passengers on a first come, first served basis and no passengers have priority over any other passenger on the bus. Under current legislation, this includes wheelchair users.

5. Where the bay is occupied and a wheelchair user wishes to board, our drivers will ask passengers if they are prepared to move to allow the wheelchair on board. However, if these passengers refuse to move, the driver does not have any power to enforce movement and unfortunately the wheelchair cannot be carried.

6. Under no circumstances can pushchairs and wheelchairs be carried in the same bay on the bus*. Where there is already a wheelchair on the bus, no pushchairs can be accommodated** and where there are already pushchairs in the bay, no wheelchairs can be accommodated.* We are trialling a new bay on Go2 Navy 48 and Citylink 1, where 1 wheelchair can share with up to 2 pushchairs. ** Pushchairs can be folded and placed in the luggage area.

7. Our drivers will always aim to park at bus stops to allow wheelchairs and pushchairs to board easily, though please accept our apologies in advance if parked vehicles obstruct the bus pulling up at the stop. Ramps will be deployed, on request, to wheelchair users and the bus will ‘kneel’, where appropriate.

8. When you board the bus, hold your card to the reader or pay your fare in the normal way and make your way to the bay.

9. In the bay, ensure you park in a suitable way so that your wheelchair and pushchair does not obstruct the gangway.

a. Wheelchair users must park the rear of the wheelchair against the back-rest fitted and the arm (where fitted) placed into position. The brakes must be applied. Do not travel sideways.

b. Pushchairs must be parked inside the bay and the brakes applied. Do not overload the handles of the pushchair with shopping bags, since this can cause them to tip over.

10. The pushchair and wheelchair must be occupied at all times when inside the bay. Unoccupied pushchairs and wheelchairs must be folded down and placed in the luggage rack.

11. When you want to alight the bus, please press the bell, giving enough notice for the driver to stop safely. The bell inside the bay is designed to let the driver know a wheelchair or pushchair wants to get off. Please try to stay in the bay until the bus has stopped.

12. When the bus has stopped, the driver will deploy the ramp, on request, or ‘kneel’ the bus where appropriate. Please wait for this to happen before alighting the bus.

* A small number of buses have 2 bays and can accommodate a wheelchair and a pushchair on the bus, but not in the same bay.