West Sussex coaches

County advice overview

National Express provide coach routes in West Sussex and nationwide. 

Coaches are accessible with low floor access and a wheelchair ramp.  There is a designated wheelchair space as well as a passenger assistance button to alert the driver if you require assistance.

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 regional coach operators running public services exclusively within the West Sussex area, apart from private hire companies. 

National Operators

National Express

Provides a coach service from Worthing to Brighton (includes Lancing and Shoreham-by-Sea). National Express also provides a service from Worthing to London.

Help with Cost

Check my Bus

The Check my Bus website can help you find timetables and the cheapest fares for your journey. It can be used for any national coach company.

National Express Disabled Coachcard

You can apply for a Disabled Coachcard offering a third off fare prices. There is an annual fee and a £2.50 postage fee for the card. 

There are no restrictions on peak and off-peak travel times. 

National Express Senior Coachcard

If you are 60 or over, you can apply for a National Express Senior Coachcard. It offers a third off 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. This includes public holidays, bank holidays and weekends. 

Benefits include:

• Save a third 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 three days in advance of your travel.
• Free journey if your coach is delayed for over an hour.

You can apply for a National Express Disabled Coachcard or Senior Coachcard on the National Express website, by phoning 0871 781 8181, or at any National Express ticket outlet.

Special Assistance 

If you require assistance during your journey, for example, wheelchair assistance or help getting on and off a coach, contact the National Express Assisted Travel Team on 03717 818181. 

Or you can complete an online Assisted Travel form.  

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. 

Assistance dogs can be carried on National Express coaches. It is recommended to pre-book and for the dog to wear a safety harness.

Travelling with Mobility Equipment

National Express

National Express have a dedicated Assisted Travel Team who you can contact on 03717 818181 (Option 3) to talk through your needs. (Lines open 9.00am – 5.00pm, seven days a week.) 

Alternatively, you can contact via the online Assisted Travel Form. 

It is not a requirement to book assistance in advance of travel, 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. 

Contact 03717 818181 (Option 3).

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

• the wheelchair is compatible with the space on the coach,
• the combined weight of the customer and the wheelchair do not exceed the maximum weight capacity of being lifted by the wheelchair lift,
• 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, they will make all reasonable efforts to carry out checks on the day. 

Customers cannot travel on their mobility scooters. However, small lightweight mobility scooters that can be dismantled and safely stowed in the luggage hold of the coach are accepted. Please note, National Express staff cannot do this for you.

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

Information regarding accessible travel and mobility equipment on National Express coaches can be found via this link.

Routes and Timetable links

National Express

There is a link on the National Express website for timetables.  

You can download timetables and also plan a journey using the ‘Choose your journey’ website page.