Bus passengers in Rayleigh, Essex, will see changes to their local travel schedules starting Sunday 22 February 2026, as First Bus (First Essex) adjusts its network to improve reliability. The operator says it is updating timetables to address delays caused by heavy traffic and ongoing roadworks on Rayleigh Road and Eastwood Road.
Services affected in the Rayleigh area include the 20 (Southend–Hullbridge), the 25 (Southend–Basildon via Rayleigh) and the X30 Airlink to Stansted Airport. First Bus says some departure times have been moved by up to 15 minutes to help buses stay on schedule throughout the day. These changes follow a set of updates made in early January that introduced the 20S student service.
The timetable revisions form part of work under the Essex Enhanced Partnership (branded Travel Essex) to create a more stable network across the county. First Bus and Travel Essex say they are using GPS tracking data from recent operations to ‘re-time’ journeys — allowing longer scheduled running times where required to reduce bus bunching after vehicles are delayed by congestion or roadworks.
Local commuters and students are being encouraged to check the new departure times for their usual stops, including Rayleigh Railway Station and Rayleigh High Street. Local reporting in the Echo has noted that, while most routes remain unchanged, the scheduled times for the first and last services on some routes have been amended. Official First Bus timetable data indicates that, for example, Service 25’s frequency has not been reduced but the span of operation (the timing of first and last journeys) has been adjusted — readers should consult the official timetables or the Travel Essex change calendar for exact first/last times at their stop.
Passengers should check First Bus’s Essex news and service updates or the published timetables before travelling: https://www.firstbus.co.uk/essex/news-and-service-updates and https://www.travelessex.co.uk/about-timetables-maps/bus-timetable-changes.
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