Kent School Buses

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What time does the bus arrive? Where do I wait for the bus? What do I need to get on the bus? These are the questions we all have when we make the move to secondary school.

At Stagecoach South East, we know how nerve-wracking it can be to catch the bus to school, so we have put together a video on how to catch the bus to put your mind at ease!

The video is for you if you are a student transitioning towards using buses as part of your daily commute, easing any anxieties you may be feeling as you approach secondary school. But it also serves as a great tool for all students, irrespective of what year you are in, on how to behave on our buses and at bus stops.

From how to collect your bus pass, waiting for the bus and how to behave on our buses, this video tells you the do's and don'ts on how to get the bus to school!

With special thanks to our driver, Carl Wright for his excellent driving and acting skills! And a round of applause for the students and teachers at St George's School in Broadstairs for an Oscar worthy performance on how to catch the bus!

Changes to bus routes for the 2026-27 academic year

The 653 between The Canterbury Academy and Old Church Way, Chartham, will no longer be run by Stagecoach. This route will now be carried out by Carey's Transport.

The 966 and 968 will now be run by RJ Coaches.

The 969 will now be run by Chalkwell Coaches.

The 964, between South Ashford and The Lenham School, and the 965, between Park Farm and The Lenham School, will be replaced by the L1, running between Ashford International Railway Station and The Lenham School. View the timetable here. 

The 501 will now serve Chilmington Green School. View the timetable here.

Get your bus pass

We recommend using a Kent County Council Travel Saver pass, which you can apply for on the Kent County Council website. For the 2026/2027 academic year, this will cost £615 if paying upfront, £625 if paying in instalments or £170 for low-income families, and saves up to 50% on the cost of travel to and from school. These can be collected on your first day of school from your teacher.

In most cases the County Council's Travel Saver pass offers the best value for young people using buses in Kent. It's important that young people have their pass on them and scan it on the ticket machine when they board the bus. Any young person boarding a bus without a valid pass will be asked to buy a ticket for their journey.

We are here for you everyday of the week!

Your KCC Travel Saver pass gives you unlimited travel on buses from 6am to 7pm on Mondays to Fridays. Passes can be used in school holidays but not in August. You can use your Travel Saver pass to buy a £1 'KTS' single ticket on any Stagecoach bus in Kent outside these times. Whether you want to study late, meet friends, or pop into town, you can get cheap travel outside KCC's selective hours and days; even more reason to get a KCC Travel Saver!

Paying for a bus fare

We recommend using a KCC Travel Saver pass, but we also offer a wide-range of tickets at excellent value that can be bought on our app and on our buses.

You can check the ticket options for your particular journey using our ticket finder here. Although we accept cash payment, we are encouraging the use of contactless payment methods.

If you have a mobile smartphone, you can download our app and buy tickets straight to your phone. Find out more here. Through the Stagecoach app you can plan journeys, purchase tickets, check timetables and track your bus on the live map feature!

Resources: 

Catching the bus to School

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