West & north-west travel guide

We’re making it so much easier to get between Dedworth and Heathrow Terminal 5 and home again, any day of the week at times that suit you.

From 19 August 2023, Go2Gate minibuses provides a bus service that is more like your own personal taxi, that you book on an easy-to-use app. It will pick you up close to home within a defined area in Dedworth, and the app will show you where to wait. Team Heathrow will pay £2. 

A new park and ride facility is now available in Reading, at the Thames Valley Park & Ride. RailAir coaches link the Park & Ride with Heathrow Terminals 2, 3, 5 and Compass Centre up to every 30 minutes.

• Team Heathrow can park for free for up to 96 hours. On the ticket machines, click "Corporate Use Only" and enter this PIN* - A4871. Then enter your car registration. Retain your ticket - there is no need to display in your car. 
• A 4-week season ticket for the RA1 RailAir coach can be purchased on the First Bus App for just £120. Alternatively, a pack of 10 single tickets is available from the First Commuter Travel Club for just £57.50 (that's £5.75 single, or £11.50 day return). Enter the code H3ATHROWCTC21 at www.firstbeeline.co.uk/ctc
• Times of the coaches can be found here - www.railair.com

* PIN number will change periodically - keep checking back here

To help with the cost of living, the Government has introduced a bus fare cap. Not all bus operators at Heathrow are participating in the scheme, but Team Heathrow shouldn't have to pay more than £2 on any bus service, as alternatives were introduced in 2022.

The following are free to use between terminals: 

• H30 bus
  
• Elizabeth line and Heathrow Express
• Piccadilly line

It is now also free to travel between Heathrow terminals and Hatton Cross on the Piccadilly line and bus route H3.

You will need Oyster or contactless for free travel on trains and the Underground (to activate the ticket gates). You will not be charged for your journey between any Heathrow terminal or Hatton Cross. 

Alternatively, if using the trains between terminals, collect a free train transfer ticket from the machines at stations. They cannot be used on the Underground. Not validating a card or payment device when entering and exiting a station at Heathrow could result in a charge being incurred, which may be a maximum fine.

From 1 June 2023, the H30 early morning free bus service will be improved with new stops at Cargo, BA Waterside and Compass Centre. At Waterside, buses will stop at the bus shelter close to the traffic lights on Colnbrook By-Pass.

Team Heathrow colleagues travel for free in both directions on the Hotel Hoppa buses between the Renaissance Hotel and T2/T3. Just show your Heathrow ID to the driver. All Hotel Hoppa buses scheduled to serve the Renaissance Hotel will be heading to Terminals 2 and 3, but please ask the driver, just to be sure. 

We’re making it so much easier to get between Dedworth and Heathrow Terminal 5 and home again, any day of the week at times that suit you.

From 19 August 2023, Go2Gate minibuses provide a bus service that is more like your own personal taxi, that you book on an easy-to-use app. It will pick you up close to home within a defined area in Dedworth, and the app will show you where to wait. Team Heathrow will pay £2. 

From 27 August 2023, the 4 was renumbered to the A4, running up to every 15 minutes from Cippenham to Central Bus Station on Mondays to Fridays and more frequent every evening too.

Click here for the new timetable.

Team Heathrow can purchase the following discounted mTickets through the First Commuter Travel Club (see Free Travel and Concessions). They are only valid on routes 4, 7 and 8:

• LHR Commuter 4-Week - £35
  
• LHR 10-Journey - £20

Route 5 in Slough was extended to Heathrow Terminal 5 via Datchet and Poyle from 2 April.

Buses will run approximately every hour, on all days of the week, from early in the morning until late at night. The first journey every day will be extended beyond Terminal 5 to Heathrow Central Bus Station. 

Click here for the new timetable.

Team Heathrow can travel for 28 days for just £34 with the simplySlough & Windsor ticket on the Thames Valley app.

Buses run up to every 20 minutes on Mondays to Fridays. Double-deck buses are now providing additional capacity and comfort. An extra trip from Britwell to Slough commences on 27 August 2023 to connect with the improved A4 bus.

Click here for the new timetable.

Team Heathrow can purchase the following discounted mTickets through the First Commuter Travel Club (see Free Travel and Concessions). They are only valid on routes 4, 7 and 8:

• - LHR Commuter 4-Week - £35
  
• - LHR 10-Journey - £20

The 102 provides direct public transport to the airport from parts of High Wycombe, Wycombe Marsh, Holtspur, Beaconsfield and Gerrards Cross. The service operates from very early until very late, seven days a week.

Team Heathrow colleagues can purchase the following tickets on the Carousel Buses App:

• £20 - Team Heathrow 10 Trip
  
• £50 - Team Heathrow 1 Month
• £500 - Team Heathrow Annual

(also valid for use on routes 101 and 104)

Buses run up to every 30 minutes between Slough Town Centre and Terminal 5, via Langley, Brands Hill and Colnbrook.

The first bus arrives at Terminal 5 at 03:51 every day, and the last bus departs from T5 at 23:30 every day. The journey time from Slough town centre to T5 is under 30 minutes.

Team Heathrow colleagues can purchase a 28-day simplySlough & Windsor ticket for £34, less than half the normal price of £70. This is only available on the Green Line 702 app (click on 'Heathrow Staff' in the mobile ticket section).

**Special Offer** Brands Hill to T5 and all stops in Between just £1. Pay the driver.

An annual season ticket for £1,000 is available for use by Team Heathrow colleagues on the Airline coach service between the park & ride facility at Handy Cross (next to junction 4 of the M40) and Heathrow. It can also be used on Carousel Buses at no additional cost. Or buy a 12-trip ticket for £70.

To purchase the ticket, visit: www.theairlineoxford.co.uk/oxford-to-heathrow-bus and scroll down to ''The Airline fares'' and click on ''Discounts for Heathrow Staff''. The pass is isused on a smartcard, so please allow time for postage.

Or purchase Carousel Network tickets - £12 a day, £45 for any 5 days, £39 for 1 week, £120 for 1 month.

Car parking is free for up to 96 hours. Remember to ask the driver for a car park voucher when boarding the coach at High Wycombe. Visit www.carouselbuses.co.uk/high-wycombe-parkride

Travelling from Oxford to Heathrow? An annual season ticket is £1,750 and a 12-trip ticket is £90.

The RA1 from Reading operates up to every 30 mins, with journey times to Heathrow as little as 40 mins. The service will call at Thames Valley P&R from 23 July, where Team Heathrow can park for free for up to 96 hours (on the ticket machines, click “Corporate Use Only” and enter this PIN - A4871. then enter car registration and select expiry time). Retain your ticket - no need to display in your car.

From the same date, two additional early morning journeys will operate, complementing the existing journey by calling at Twyford Waitrose (02:59, 03:29, 04:29), Maidenhead Station (03:15, 03:45, 04:45) and Taplow Bishops Centre (03:21, 03:51, 04:51). For an introductory period, Team Heathrow travel for free on these journeys. Just show your Heathrow ID.

A 4-Week Season ticket can be purchased on the First Bus App for just £120. A monthly ticket is available from Reading Station ticket office. A pack of 10 single tickets is available from the First Commuter Travel Club for just £57.50. Enter the unique code H3ATHROWCTC21 at www.firstbeeline.co.uk/ctc 

Many bus services at Heathrow are provided by Transport for London (TfL). They charge a flat fare of £1.75 for any journey, but cash is not accepted. You will need an Oyster Card or contactless card/mobile device. TfL has a Hopper Fare, which is £1.75 for unlimited journeys made within one hour of touching in for the first time. There is a daily cap of £5.25, meaning you will never pay more (from 04:30 to 04:29 the next day), assuming you use the same Oyster Card or contactless account. The weekly cap is £24.70 (from Monday to Sunday).

Bus & Tram Pass season ticket

You can buy a Monthly or Annual Bus & Tram Pass and add it to your Oyster Card. 

• £94.90 for a Monthly Bus & Tram Pass - cheaper than four weekly caps.
• £988 for an Annual Bus & Tram Pass - 12 months travel for the price of ten and a half.

Where do I obtain an Oyster Card? 

You can get an Oyster Card online at www.tfl.gov.uk, at Oyster Ticket Stops in many newsagents in London or at all tube, London Overground and most Elizabeth line stations. You need to pay £7 for an Oyster card. You can then buy a Bus & Tram Pass season ticket from the same locations, or using the TfL Oyster and contactless app.  

The National Express Airport Coachcard is now available to Team Heathrow colleagues and gives a 1/3 off Standard and Fully Flexible fares throughout the UK for 12 months. There are no restrictions on peak and off peak travel times, including public holidays and weekends. 

You can purchase one for £5 (plus £2.50 postage) by calling the Customer Contact Centre on 0871 781 8181 (calls cost 13p per minute, plus your phone company's access charge). Alternatively, you can buy one from the We Know London desks at Heathrow, by showing your Heathrow ID. 

Coach tickets can then be purchased online at www.nationalexpress.com, by ticking the 'I have a Coachcard' box in the passenger details section, and then selecting young Persons Coachcard.  

The Elizabeth line is the stopping train between Paddington and Heathrow, running about every 15 minutes to T2/T3 and every 30 minutes to T4 and T5. Trains call at Action Main Line, Ealing Broadway, West Ealing, Hanwell, Southall and Hayes & Harlington.

Travelcards with zone 6 are valid to Heathrow. For example, a Travelcard from Hanwell or Southall will require zones 4, 5 and 6, costing £33.80 for 7 days, £129.80 for a month and £1,352 for a year. You will need an Oyster Card (£7 extra), which you can get online at www.tfl.gov.uk, at Oyster Ticket Stops in many newsagents in London or at all tube, London Overground and most Elizabeth line stations. 

Do you travel by train from Twyford or Maidenhead? See the Reading RailAir page in the West & North West section of this guide, for details of a new early morning coach journey before hte trains to Heathrow commence. 

Team Heathrow colleagues receive a very special welcome at the Heathrow Cycle Hub, including: 

• - Free bike servicing (worth up to £50)*
• - 10% discount on all shop purchases
• - 50% discount on the Winter Cycling Package*

Next to The Academy on Newall Road, TW6 2AP, 020 8990 9720 or email info@runwaycycling.com

Opening hours

• Monday to Friday: 08:00-18:00 (-20:00 Thursday)
• Saturday: 10:00-14:00, Sunday/holidays: Closed

_{*terms and conditions apply}

Folded bikes are carried free of charge without restriction on all train and tube services to Heathrow, plus Great Western Railway and South Western Railway services which operate nearby. Non-folded bikes can only be taken on trains and the Underground at Heathrow as follows:

Elizabeth line - Trains on Mondays to Fridays before 07:30, between 09:30 and 16:00, and after 19:00, plus any train from Paddington from start of service until 16:00, and any train to Paddington from 09:30 until end of service. Any time on weekends and public holidays.

Heathrow Express - Trains leaving Heathrow on Mondays to Fridays before 06:30 and after 10:00, leaving Paddington on Mondays to Fridays before 16:30 and after 19:00, any time on weekends and public holidays.

Piccadilly line - Between Barons Court, Hounslow West and Uxbridge on Mondays to Fridays before 07:30, between 09:30 and 16:00, and after 19:00, any time on weekends and public holidays. 

The Government approved Cycle to Work Scheme is a salary sacrifice scheme, which enables UK PAYE taxpayers to save between 32% - 47%* on the cost of purchasing a bike and accessories. 

You will pay nothing up front and the payments are taken every month for at least 12 months, without paying any tax.

Heathrow Airport Limited (HAL) uses Green Commute Initiative (GCI) - www.greencommuteinitiative.uk

Other employers may have alternative providers. 

GCI hires the bike directly to the employees for six years, with no end of scheme fees. This avoids any tax liabilities, as six years is the point when HMRC considers the Fair Market Value of a hire bike to be zero. At the end of the six-year period, GCI transfer ownership to the employee for a £1 processing fee. However, in practice, the bike is the employee's from day one.

Please note, the Government's guidance stipulates that only cycles for active travel and cyclist's safety equipment can be hired under the Cycle to Work Scheme. At least 50% of the cycle’s use must be for commuting.

_{*actual amount depends on the taxpayer's rate of tax}

Runway Cycling, the company that manages the Heathrow Cycle Hub, hires out bikes by the hour, by the day and also overnight. A helmet and lock is provided as part of the hire. For more details, call 020 8990 9720, email info@runwaycycling.com or visit their website. 

Liftshare is the UK's leading car sharing platform, and hosts the car share scheme at Heathrow. The simple yet effective system matches together commuters who make similar journeys, or travel in the same direction, each day. The result? Organised travel, shared transport costs, reduced Carbon output and reduced congestion on our roads and in our increasingly busy car parks. Register for free by clicking below.

It’s very important that you validate on the way to work (as well as displaying a car share permit in your windscreen), if you wish to use the dedicated car share spaces in car parks and be entered into our prize draw every month for high street vouchers (1 x £50 and 2 x £25). Please watch the following video to see how easy it is:

If you’ve found a car share partner, you can stop requests for new matches by selecting “Hide” in your account settings.