Your comprehensive guide to the new Stagecoach Leam-Uni bus routes

Because the idea of a U1A seems baffling


If you live in Leamington, you might have seen that there are some new additions to the Stagecoach family. The U1 and U2 are joined by the U1A and U3. Yes, you read right, there are now FOUR buses to keep track of, lucky us.

Not only are there new routes, but now that the top of the Parade is pedestrianised for social distancing, the diversions change the accessibility of stops in North Leam. And if you’re living on campus and thinking of making the trek, you’re probably equally, if not more confused by the options.

We went through the routes on Stagecoach’s website and bus timetables and here’s your breakdown:

Who is she ????

U1A

The U1’s new doppelganger. U1As run throughout the day, but with fewer early morning/late night offerings that the U1 has. It’s almost the same route, but not quite. Unless you live near Heathcote, you do not need to care. Skip on to what the U1 is, and pretend they’re the same bus.

If you do care about the Heathcote stops, or if you want to seem smart to anyone who doesn’t know the difference, here you go. On the route from Warwick Gates towards the University, instead of stopping at Warwick Gates Peabody Way (where the U1 stops) the U1A stops at Warwick Gates Lionheart Avenue.

From Warwick Gates, the U1A runs from 6.37 to 20.07 Monday to Saturday. From the University, it runs from 8.56 to 21.11 Monday to Saturday. The U1A does not run on a Sunday.

U1

The big one, the bus route by which all other U-somethings are judged by. This is your weekender, your late-nighter and your morning-after-er.

Warwick Gates to University of Warwick Interchange

The bus starts at Heathcote Hospital, heads around Heathcote, until it stops at the Warwick Gates stop, Peabody Way. It then heads north up Tachbrook Road, then past Neon to the Parish Church, with all your regular beloved stops.

Then, due to the pedestrianised Parade, it diverts east just after the Pump Rooms, adding two stops (Clarendon St, and Clarendon Ave) to make up for the ones missed on the Parade. Then it stops at Beauchamp Road just above the Parade, before re-joining the usual route.

It is then scheduled to continue to the A46, all the way to Gibbet Hill, then a final stop at the University Interchange.

This route aims to get you from the Parish Church to the University in around half an hour.

The U1 runs the earliest and latest buses, from 5.47 to 2.03 the following day from Heathcote Hospital on a weekday, and from 6.47 to 2.03 the following day on a Saturday. On Sundays and some Bank Holidays, it runs from 6.57 to 21.47.

University of Warwick Interchange to Warwick Gates

On the return, the U1 follows the same stops from the University Interchange, down the A46 and towards the top of the Parade. From there, however, the bus heads around to the west to divert around the pedestrianisation.

Re-joining the usual route below the Parade, the bus turns off Tachbrook and finishes at Heathcote Hospital, without looping around Heathcote as before.

From the University, on weekdays buses run from 6.43 to 2.35 the next morning. Saturdays are from 8.26 to 2.35 the next morning, and Sundays (and some Bank Holidays) the first bus from campus leaves at 8.19, and the last one is at 22.21.

U1 – anywhere, anytime; U2 – the roundtrip; U3 – so basic and yet so extra

U2

The other old friend. This time doing something new and edgy.

The U2 starts and stops at Tachbrook. From Tachbrook, it stops at the Parish Church, follows the same diversions and new stops east around the Parade, stops at the new point on Beauchamp Road before going direct to the University via A46.

Arriving at the University, the U2 then gets interesting. We stop at the Interchange first, then loop around central campus. Mind blowing. Stops are behind the Sciences buildings at the Security Office stop, then at the stop titled ‘Academic Loop Road’, which is behind the Zeeman (Mathematics) building.

The bus then goes back round to the Interchange, before heading back to Leam on the same route (but diverting west around the Parade).

The U2 runs from 7.26 to 20.26 from Tachbrook, and from 9.22 to 20.07 from the University Security Office on weekdays (excluding Bank Hols). The U2 does not run on a weekend.

U3

The U3. It’s like the U1 2.0, except U2 was already taken, so they called it the U3?

The U3 does the simplest route to remember, without any of the faff of looping around central campus, or going down south to Heathcote.

It starts at Tachbrook, stops at the Parish Church, then diverts around the Parade. Last Leamington stop is Beauchamp Road, before it heads straight on to the University.

On weekdays, the U3 runs from Tachbrook between 6.41 to 20.16 on weekdays and from the University Interchange between 9.46 and 20.01. The U3 also does not run on a weekend.

For the full bus timetables for the U1, U1A, U2 and U3, see the Stagecoach website.

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