Buses in Jersey
This page is full of information and tips to help you make the most of using buses in Jersey.
How practical it is to get around Jersey by bus depends on the time of year, and where in the Island you are staying.
Buses in Jersey are run by Connex under the names Mybus and Explorer. The majority of Mybus routes run from the bus station in St Helier, in a sort of fan shape, out along the main roads ending in different parts of the Island.
The Explorer buses are 4 routes running to the main tourist attractions which operate from Good friday until the beginning of November. These buses make it much easier to get from one bay or attraction to another without having to go back to the bus station. Most Explorer routes run from around 10am to 5pm.
The new indoor bus station is on the Esplanade, between Conway St and Castle St, near the new Tourist information office. It's a big improvement on the old bus station. You can wait indoors, and there are displays screens showing the next bus times and a café. However the bus station closes in the evening and buses leave from the stands outside. Seating is available, but not enough at busy times.
Tip
The toilets are outside the bus station to the right as you go out to the pavement.
The current timetable for buses in Jersey is available online here.
Once you are in Jersey, you can buy a copy of the timetable for 50p from the Connex office at the bus station.
Tip
The map detailing the Jersey bus routes is printed so small in the timetable it is hard to read even with excellent eyesight.
Click this link
to download a copy of the Jersey bus route map which you can print out.
(If you choose 100% magnification of the map you can print it out in
four A4 pages, then it's readable!) The maps in the summer and winter
timetables are different as not all routes run in the winter.
The Jersey bus summer timetable runs from the end of May until the end of September. Explorer buses run from Easter until the beginning of November. Most parts of the Island are well-served with buses in the summer, and most routes run into the evenings.
There are fewer buses on Sundays and Bank Holidays, including Jersey's Liberation Day (9 May).
Tip
Buses
won't stop at most stops unless you put your hand out to indicate that
you want the bus. This is particularly true at bus stops serving several
routes as the driver may assume you are waiting for a different route
bus.
Routes
The most frequent buses in Jersey are:
- Number 1 which runs in an easterly direction from the bus Station in St Helier along the south coast and then up the east coast to Gorey.
- Number 15 which runs from the bus station in St Helier westwards along the South coast to St Aubin, up the hill to Les Quennevais and then to the Airport.
- Number 14 to St Brelade's Bay.
- Number 18 to Havre Des Pas.
This means that if you are staying in Havre Des Pas, in the town of St Helier, anywhere from St Helier to St Aubin on the south coast, St Brelade or anywhere on the east coast up to Gorey, you will have a frequent bus service.
Tip
Most drivers are very helpful. If you are not sure where to get off, ask the driver to tell you when the bus reaches your stop.
Fares
Bus fares are reasonable, at £1 or £1.50 for a single journey for an adult. All fares after 7pm are a maximum of £1. Children under 3 travel free, from ages 3 to 11 they travel for 50p at all times, and from ages 12-15 tickets cost 50p until 7pm and £1 after that. Students with a UK NUS card can travel for 50p until 7pm.
There are no return tickets - they are all singles. You don't need to have exact money for your fare, but drivers can't always change large notes.
1, 3, 5 and 7 day unlimited travel passes are available. 1 day passes can be bought on the bus. For others you need to go to the Connex office at the bus station.
Tip
Think carefully before buying the
unlimited travel passes. They are only good value if you are going to be
making several maximum fare journeys a day. For example, the 3-day
pass, currently costs £22.50. You would need to make at least 10 maximum
fare journeys to save money.
Extra buses
Buses travelling towards St Helier during the morning rush hour may not stop for passengers at the last few stops if they are full.
There can be long queues for buses leaving the bus station during the evening rush hour. If the bus is so full that passengers are turned away, Connex will generally provide an additional bus.
Tip
Extra
buses are sometimes arranged to and from large events. These buses
don't appear in the timetables. These services may be advertised in the
local paper, and in event publicity. You can ring Connex on 877772 to
check.
Tip
On the afternoon of the Battle of Flowers
parade no bus services leave the bus station between 2 and 4pm. The
first buses after the parade finishes will be very full and you might
not get on. Be prepared to wait for a later bus.
Travelling with luggage
Unfortunately, even the buses on the airport route have very little luggage space. If the bus has a wheelchair space, this will usually be full of luggage - less than ideal if someone needs to use the bus in a wheelchair.
If the bus has no wheelchair space, you need to be prepared to lift your luggage onto a seat, as there will be nowhere else to put it!
You may decide it's worth getting a taxi instead. Why not ask if anyone in the queue is going in the same direction and share the cost?
Travelling in a wheelchair
When Connex took over the bus route they bought new buses with wheelchair access and ramps. Unfortunately, since then, they have added a number of buses which are not wheelchair accessible.
This makes using the buses difficult in a wheelchair, as you have to phone ahead to the bus station and ask what type of bus is on the route at the time you want to travel.
Room to manouever into the wheelchair space is limited, as Jersey buses are narrow than standard because of the width of the lanes.If the bus is busy, it may be very difficult to get on. Additionally, because little luggage space is provided on the buses, the wheelchair space on the No 15 airport route is often full of baggage.
The result is that travelling by bus is awkward and often frustrating, but not completely impossible.
Travelling with young children
The driver of the bus has discretion over whether to allow you to use a pushchair or pram on the bus, or whether you will need to fold it. Generally, you can use the pushchair if the bus has a wheelchair space which no-one is using, and isn't too full.
You will have to be prepared fold it up quickly if necessary.
Tip
If
you have a child in a pushchair and you don't want to have to take them
out, plan to use buses away from the peak times, and avoid the airport
route.
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