Tyne and Wear coaches

County advice overview

There are various coach stops throughout Tyne and Wear which are accessible for people with disabilities, including wheelchair users. 

National Express and Megabus provide wheelchair-accessible coaches. Wheelchair spaces can be found at the front of the coaches, whilst storage for manual wheelchairs and scooters can be booked in advance. 

National Express coaches are equipped with a wheelchair lift. However, it cannot be deployed at all stops, so you should always check in advance if this is a requirement, by contacting the Assisted Travel Team on 03717 818181.

If passenger assistance is needed at the coach stations, you can contact the coach operators to pre-arrange.  

Key tips

Always allow yourself plenty of time to plan your journey. It may be worth considering:

• If you will need help to access the coach and will you be travelling with mobility equipment. Consider whether it is easier to take equipment with you or hire it at your destination from an outlet such as ShopMobility.
• Booking assistance in advance. Before you contact the coach operator to arrange, consider all aspects of your journey so you can obtain all the information in one call. For example, if travelling by coach are you able to access the onboard toilets? Will your destination stop be accessible?
• When booking transport assistance, you should be able to provide the size of a wheelchair or mobility scooter, including the total weight with or without the user.
• What local transport do you need once you arrive at your destination? Will you need to pre-book an accessible taxi?
• Will you be making this journey more than once a year? If so, it may be worth researching concessionary travel schemes.

Remember that your local Hubs Mobility Advice Service can signpost you to the correct travel operator and mobility organisations.

Operators

Regional Operators

There are no coach operators running services exclusively within the Tyne and Wear areas. Day trips and personal travel can be organised on an individual basis.

National Operators

National Express

https://www.nationalexpress.com/en

Provide a coach service from Newcastle, Sunderland and Chester Le Street areas to London.

Megabus

https://uk.megabus.com/

Provide an extensive bus service from Newcastle and Sunderland connecting with many other destinations countrywide.

Help with cost

Check my Bus

https://www.checkmybus.co.uk/

Will help you find the cheapest fares for your journey.

National Express Senior Coachcard

If you are 60 or over, you can apply for a National Express Senior Coachcard. 

It offers a 1/3 saving on Standard and Fully Flexible fares to hundreds of towns, cities and airports across the UK. There are no restrictions on peak and off-peak travel times, so you can travel when it suits you and your plans. This includes public holidays, bank holidays and weekends. 

Benefits include:

• Save 1/3 on Standard and Fully Flexible fares, even at peak times.
• £15 day-return on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays to anywhere in the UK (excluding airports), just book 3 days in advance of your travel.
• Free journey if your coach is delayed for over an hour
• You can apply for a Senior Coachcard on the National Express website, by phoning 0871 781 8181, or at any National Express ticket outlet.

National Express Disabled Coachcard

A Disabled Coachcard offers a 1/3 saving on Standard and Fully Flexible fares to hundreds of UK towns, cities and airports. For more information, please use this link.

Special assistance

Journey Assistance Cards

National Express have created a selection of Journey Assistance Cards for passengers. 

These explain to staff and drivers any need for assistance or exemptions from requirements. For example, if you have a hearing impediment. 

Journey Assistance Cards can be downloaded via this link.

Travelling with mobility equipment

National Express

Have a dedicated Assisted Travel Team who you can contact on 03717 818181 to talk through your needs. (Lines are open 9.00am – 5.00pm, 7 days a week.) It is not a requirement to book your assistance in advance but it will help National Express to provide your assistance if you do so.

Coaches are equipped with a wheelchair lift. However, it cannot be deployed at all stops, so it is best to check in advance if your stop is accessible.

Wheelchair users are advised to book travel in advance, although this is not essential. This will allow National Express to check:

• that the wheelchair is compatible with the space on the coach
• that the combined weight of the customer and the wheelchair do not exceed the maximum weight capacity of being lifted by the wheelchair lift
• that the locations at which the customer plans to board and alight the coach from are accessible stops at which the wheelchair lift can be deployed
• that the specific coach on which the customer plans to travel is not already fully booked

It is recommended that you contact National Express 36 hours in advance of travel. This will ensure they are able to carry out checks. If you book same-day travel, National Express will make all reasonable efforts to carry out checks on the day. 

Customers cannot travel in their mobility scooters. However small lightweight mobility scooters that can be dismantled and safely stowed in the luggage hold of the coach are accepted.

In order to check if your mobility scooter will be accepted, you will need to provide National Express with the size, make and model. You will be advised either at the time of booking, or by National Express calling you back, about the suitability of your mobility scooter for carriage in the luggage hold.

Further passenger assistance information can be found on the National Express website.

Megabus

Offer assistance to people with walking difficulties or those who normally use wheelchairs.

They recommend that all wheelchair users contact them before purchasing their tickets (preferably at least 36 hours before their intended journey), to book the wheelchair space.

For wheelchair space reservations, contact: 0141 352 4444 (Monday –Friday, 10:00am -16:00pm) or email: enquiries@megabus.com

All coaches are wheelchair accessible and can carry one seated wheelchair user subject to size and weight limits. (Max. weight 300kg, length 1200mm x width 700mm x height 1350mm including the seated passenger.)

Megabus are unable to accommodate passengers seated in mobility scooters. However, if you use a wheelchair (max. weight 20kg) or a mobility scooter and are able to climb the few steps into the bus, your mobility device can be stored in the luggage bay and the driver will help you to your seat.

In order to be accepted for transit, your mobility scooter must break down into separate parts each weighing no more than 20kg. You or a companion must be able to dismantle and reassemble the mobility scooter for carriage in the luggage hold.

Assistance to departing coaches is available if required. 

Further passenger assistance information can be found on the Megabus website.

Assistance Dogs

Are accepted on both Megabus and National Express services.

Routes and timetable links

Traveline

Traveline is a partnership of transport companies, local authorities and passenger groups which have come together to bring routes and times for all travel in Great Britain by bus, rail, coach and ferry. They can help you find the way that best suits you for making your journey, using the most up to date information. 

On the www.traveline.info, you can plan your journey door-to-door, see the different ways you can travel, view journey times and your route on a map.

If you need help to plan a journey, Traveline’s national call centre can be contacted on 0871 200 2233.