Edinburgh Bus Service 

Travelshops

Lothian Buses has 2 travelshops in the city centre and 1 just outside Edinburgh, in Dalkeith. 

If you're coming as a tourist or have recently moved to live here, you'll definetely want to visit a Lothian Buses travelshop sooner rather than later to get information about:

• tickets and concessions

• routes, timetables & maps

• Scottish National Entitlement Card (if you are over 60 or disabled)

Bus drivers

You can purchase your SINGLE ticket or DAY ticket directly from the bus drivers however, make sure you place the EXACT change into the red fares box as drivers do not have access to cash and cannot give change. 

When you see your bus coming, DO signal the driver that you want them to stop. The bus might not stop otherwise. Once aboard, let the driver know the type of ticket you require. He/she will then issue you with a ticket valid for your journey.

Online shop

from which you can purchase your SINGLE and DAY tickets in advance. If you are planning to travel to Edinburgh and stay with friends, your tickets will be waiting for you when you arrive! The company aims to deliver tickets within 7 working days.

The timetables are up-to-date, very simple and easy to use. They will give you the timetable for each bus service, Monday to Sunday, including how to get to the New Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh as well as colleges and universities.

Lothian Buses provide a bus tracker service to access bus information in and around Edinburgh in real time.

The service number is displayed at the top front of the bus and has numbers e.g. 3, 22, 29, occasionally preceded by a letter e.g. N22.

Route maps. The link to route maps gives you all the bus services, the bus stops for the city centre and the night buses.

Day services run from approximately 04.00 to just after midnight. The vast majority of bus services operating during the day have stops across Edinburgh city centre. 

Night services - over 10 night services run between midnight and 04.00 .  

 All of Lothian buses have easy access. This means that buses are fitted with a dedicated wheelchair space, and for some of the newest buses a specific buggy space as well.

They have a low entrance that can “kneel” to kerb height to give step free access through a flat retractable boarding ramp.

Park & Ride

There are currently 7 Park & Ride on the outskirt of Edinburgh and Lothian buses serve the following 6 park & ride: 

Ferrytoll Park and Ride is served by 4 bus companies

* links to the City of Edinburgh Council website

 Did you know?

Buses use “greenways” to travel quicker on main roads into and out of the city centre. 

This link will explain simply how First makes it easy and convenient to buy tickets that suit your needs. 

• Occasional travellers can purchase tickets directly from the driver. He/she will tell you which ticket is for you depending on your circumstances

• Frequent travellers can purchase their weekly or monthly bus pass through loads and loads of shops, from small to big, in and out of the city. This link will tell you where your nearest PayPoint outlet is located. Frequent travellers can also purchase their e-tickets online.

First covers a large geographical area and you can purchase tickets and concessions for the zonal area that is relevant to you.

• This link shows the Fares Zone map and the towns covered. 

• Clicking the following link will tell you what fare you need to pay according to your zonal area and the type of ticket/ concession you require.

Practical info!

• Edinburgh and the neighbouring towns are in zone M.

• Drivers will only give you change for your ticket if you travel in Central Scotland and the Borders area. For all travels in Edinburgh and the Lothians you need to give the driver the EXACT change.

To find out about First timetables for South East and Central Scotland visit the company's dedicated webpage. It's well done and comprehesnsive.

Alternatively, you can call Traveline on 0871 200 22 33. 

● Route maps. This link will show you a network map of First bus services across Edinburgh and East Lothian (travelling East- West) as well as the bus number for each route.

Practical info!

First buses service number is displayed at the top front of the bus and generally has a combination of letters and numbers e.g. HS1, X29 or numbers only e.g. 86, 44.

Park & Ride are located on the key routes into the city centre. The idea is simple, allow motorists to leave their cars at the edge of the city and beat the traffic in bus lanes. 

The only Park & Ride served by First buses is Sheriffhall, located south east of Edinburgh.