Leicestershire FoxConnect is an on-demand transport service designed to connect rural communities across Leicestershire. Serving Charnwood, Hinckley & Bosworth, Harborough, Melton, North West Leicestershire, and South West Leicestershire, FoxConnect provides flexible travel to and from villages, market towns and key destinations including Atherstone, Coalville, East Midlands Gateway, Lutterworth, Melton Mowbray, Market Harborough, Market Bosworth, Syston, Thurmaston Shopping Centre, and connections to Leicester. You can choose where you want to be picked up and dropped off, meaning it is a convenient and flexible way to travel.
Unlike a conventional bus service with a fixed timetable or route, Leicestershire FoxConnect journeys operate according to passenger demand and the bookings made for it on each day.
The service is available between 6:00am (the earliest pick-up time) and 7:30pm (the latest drop-off time), Monday to Saturday. The service
does not run on Sundays or bank holidays.
You can make a journey entirely within each zone from village to village or to the specified connection points outside of the zone for town centres and onward travel. You can also travel to listed connection points outside of the zone which help you to travel further by linking you with other public transport services.
To travel to a different zone you would have to make two bookings and change at one of the connection points listed on the zone map. For example, travel from Harby in zone 1 to Somerby in zone 2 would require a change at Melton town centre, with two separate journeys being booked – Harby to Melton then Melton to Somerby.
Journeys can be booked through the Leicestershire FoxConnect app which is available to download to smartphones from Google Play or the Apple Store. You can also book a journey through the telephone booking line by calling 0116 216 7756.
Once you have downloaded the app, you will need to register for an account and provide your phone number, email address, and payment card details. If you do not wish to provide payment card details, simply press ‘skip’ at the top right-hand side of the ‘billing details’ screen. To make a booking, choose your pick-up location, destination, number of passengers (up to 8 people per booking) and travel time. If there are more than eight people in your group, the extra passengers will need a separate booking. This second booking must be made by another person, as one person cannot make two bookings for the same journey. The app will then present the closest FoxConnect stops to your chosen locations if the ride is available.
You can call the FoxConnect call centre on 0116 216 7756 between 8:30am and 4:30pm Monday to Friday (excluding bank holidays). Calls are charged at the standard rate, and your call will be answered by an advisor at Nottinghamshire County Council who we have partnered with to take the calls.
You can contact FoxConnect using Relay UK. Download the Relay UK app or use a textphone and dial 18001 0116 216 7756 to contact the FoxConnect call centre.
Journeys can be booked up to seven days in advance. Your journey will depend on the availability of the service, and you will be offered a journey as close to your requested time as possible. The latest you can book is 45 minutes ahead, on a first come, first served basis.
Yes, recurring journeys can be booked up to 7 days in advance. For example, you may wish to book a journey from Heather in zone 8 to Coalville town centre, Monday to Friday, with an 8am collection and a return journey later in the day.
When creating a recurring booking, you can only select journeys that fall within the next seven days. For example, if you make your booking on a Thursday, you will be able to select recurring journeys for Friday, Saturday, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, as these fall within the next seven days.
Recurring bookings are only retained for seven days from the date they are created. To continue travelling beyond this period, you will need to create a new booking and re-select required days.
If your journey can be met by a timetabled service, the app will show the journey and times from the timetabled bus service. A FoxConnect journey will not be offered in this scenario.
You can set a ‘depart by’ or ‘arrive by’ time. If you have an appointment or onward connection, then ‘arrive by’ should be used as this ensures you will arrive at the time you have specified. The bus will be scheduled to arrive as close to that time as possible but may arrive at your
destination up to an hour before in extreme cases. If your arrival is flexible, then ‘depart by’ time is best to be used. Your bus will be scheduled up to 30 minutes either side of the time you specify based on efficiency and other bookings. Keep an eye on your phone notifications for the exact collection time as you’ll receive a text message or phone call with a more specific time before your ride and be able to track your vehicles location via the app.
Yes, your booking will show in the calendar of your app under Scheduled Rides. It will show a collection window of 20 minutes. A more specific pick-up time will be confirmed before your ride through the app, a text message or phone call. This is specified within your FoxConnect account, and you can change this by contacting the call centre or via your smartphone’s app notification settings. If you book by phone, you can still download the app to track the bus and keep informed of any updates to your journey.
Yes, you can edit the date and time of your journey if required and if there’s availability, your schedule will change. If not, you will need to either cancel or keep the original booking as it is. To change the number of passengers, you will need to cancel the original booking and rebook. If you are already on the bus, the driver will not be able to meet any requests to change your booked journey.
We understand circumstances can change, so we offer free cancellations up to two hours before your allocated pick-up time. Passengers who are late or do not show will be charged in full.
You can register a debit or credit card within the app and pay automatically, or you can pay contactless when boarding the bus.
The fare shown when you make your booking is an estimate. The final fare will be calculated after your journey has been completed and may vary from the estimated amount. If you have registered a payment card in the app, your card will be charged once the journey is complete.
If you book by telephone, you will need to pay when boarding the bus using a contactless debit or credit card. Cash payments are not accepted.
Yes, you can use your pass after 9:30am Monday to Friday and all day on Saturday.
Add your pass by clicking the menu icon (the circle with three horizontal lines) in the top-left corner of the screen. This will open a menu where you can select Concessions. Click on Concessions, then select the relevant concession by activating the slider next to it. When the slider turns blue, your pass is active and you will not be charged. To close the menu, click the X in the top-left corner of the screen.
Yes, provided they are accompanied and do not occupy a seat to the exclusion of a fare-paying passenger.
Yes, you can add half-price travel by clicking the menu icon (the circle with three horizontal lines) in the top-left corner of the screen. This will open the menu where you can select Concessions.
Select Concessions, then activate either Young Person (5-15) or Young Person (16–19) by clicking on the slider. When the slider turns blue, the concession is active and your fare will be charged at half price.
To close the menu, click the X in the top-left corner of the screen.
Yes, please register on your account that you are a wheelchair user. Your journey is then door-to-door; you do not need to go to a bus stop.
Please set an account up in your child’s name and register your own bank card on their account. The bank card details are held securely and cannot be accessed from within the app. You cannot make a telephone booking in this scenario, as a bank card would be needed for payment on the bus as no cash is accepted. Riders must be at least 13 years of age to use the app independently, and over 10 years of age to ride independently. An adult will need to escort the child onto the bus and show the fare to the driver.
Leicestershire FoxConnect uses both standard bus stops and virtual bus stops at other locations where it is safe to pick you up or drop you off. This may be a meeting point a few minutes walking distance away from your requested pick-up or where other passengers can be picked up at the same time.
Yes, the vehicles are fully accessible with a fold down ramp and meet the minimum standards for carrying wheelchair users.
Due to limited space, we cannot accept bikes or any items that cannot be folded or stored in a designated luggage area on the vehicle.
Well-behaved dogs are accepted at the discretion of the driver.
All vehicles have seat belts provided. It is the responsibility of the passenger to wear the seat belt. For children, it is the responsibility of the adult they are travelling with or who booked the journey to ensure the child is wearing the seat belt. Wearing a seat belt, where fitted, is a legal requirement.
The driver will follow a route on their phone, and the route may go via other villages picking other passengers up or dropping them off.
Please contact our customer service team on 0116 216 7756 (open Monday to Friday between 08:30 and 16:30 – excluding bank holidays).
