Routes 2 and 8 gain Sunday buses from 6 September, and the Friday and Saturday last bus from Newbury Wharf moves to 23:30. Full new times below.

Two Newbury town bus routes will run on Sundays from Sunday 6 September, and the last bus out of the Wharf on a Friday night moves back by nearly five hours from Friday 4 September.

Check the operator’s own timetable for Sunday 30 August and routes 2 and 8 return the same line: “Sorry, this service does not run in this direction on the provided date.” From 6 September they do.

West Berkshire Council announced the changes on 21 August. The times below are taken from Newbury & District’s own published timetables for the dates concerned.

What changes, and when

  • Friday 4 September: later evening journeys start on routes 2 and 8
  • Saturday 5 September: the same later evening journeys run on Saturdays
  • Sunday 6 September: routes 2 and 8 run on a Sunday
  • Sunday 20 September: a new Sunday route 34 links Newbury to Didcot through the Ilsleys, Beedon and Chieveley
Bar chart comparing the last bus from Newbury Wharf on a Friday night before and after 4 September 2026: route 2 moves from 18:40 to 23:30 and route 8 from 18:00 to 22:35
Chart by The Newbury Times. Source: Newbury & District timetables for Friday 28 August and Friday 4 September 2026

The late buses

Route 2 runs from Newbury Wharf out through Westgate Road and Elizabeth Avenue to Holborne Close in Wash Common. On Friday 28 August its last departure from the Wharf is 18:40. From 4 September four more journeys are added after it.

Route 2 from Newbury Wharf Friday and Saturday
Extra journeys added 19:00, 20:30, 22:00, 23:30
Last bus before the change 18:40 (Friday), 18:30 (Saturday)
Last bus from 4 September 23:30

The return leg gains three journeys. From 4 September, buses leave Holborne Close at 19:16, 20:46 and 22:16, reaching the Wharf at 19:30, 21:00 and 22:30. At present the last one back leaves at 18:55.

Route 8 runs from the Wharf via Racecourse Road, The Nightingales and Greyberry Copse to the Tesco superstore at The Triangle in Greenham.

Route 8 from Newbury Wharf Friday and Saturday
Extra journeys added 19:35, 21:05, 22:35
Last bus before the change 18:00 (Friday), 17:50 (Saturday)
Last bus from 4 September 22:35

Coming back, route 8 adds departures from Tesco at 20:00, 21:30 and 23:00. The last one now is 18:55.

The Sunday timetables

Route 2 runs seven times each way on a Sunday, every 90 minutes.

Route 2, Sundays Times
From Newbury Wharf 08:00, 09:30, 11:00, 12:30, 14:00, 15:30, 17:00
From Holborne Close 08:17, 09:47, 11:17, 12:47, 14:17, 15:47, 17:17
Arriving Newbury Wharf 08:30, 10:00, 11:30, 13:00, 14:30, 16:00, 17:30

Route 8 runs six times each way, and the spacing is not even. Nothing leaves the Wharf for Greenham between 11:35 and 14:35.

Route 8, Sundays Times
From Newbury Wharf 08:35, 10:05, 11:35, 14:35, 16:05, 17:35
From Tesco, The Triangle 09:00, 10:30, 12:00, 15:00, 16:30, 18:00
Arriving Newbury Wharf 09:20, 10:50, 12:20, 15:20, 16:50, 18:20

A Sunday bus to Didcot, from 20 September

The third change is not a Newbury & District route. Thames Travel is introducing a Sunday service numbered 34 between Newbury and Didcot, and it takes the village road rather than the fast one.

Its operator has published the change in these terms: “A new Sunday service 34 will be introduced between Didcot, Harwell Campus and Newbury, operating via West Ilsley, East Ilsley, Beedon and Chieveley. Buses will operate up to every two hours, with financial support from West Berkshire Council.”

The printed timetable gives five journeys each way.

Route 34, Sundays from 20 September Times
Didcot Parkway station 08:30, 10:30, 12:30, 14:30, 16:30
Arriving Newbury Wharf 09:35, 11:35, 13:35, 15:35, 17:35
Newbury Wharf, bay D 09:40, 11:40, 13:40, 15:40, 17:40
Arriving Didcot Parkway 10:48, 12:48, 14:48, 16:48, 18:48

Southbound, the first bus calls at West Ilsley (The Harrow) at 09:07, East Ilsley (Church Hill) at 09:13, Beedon (Stanmore Road) at 09:17 and Chieveley (East Lane) at 09:23. Going the other way, the 09:40 from Newbury reaches Chieveley at 09:55, Beedon at 10:01, East Ilsley at 10:05 and West Ilsley at 10:11.

That routeing matters. The weekday and Saturday X34 runs the direct way and skips those four places. Its Sunday timetable does not reach Newbury at all: check the X34 for Sunday 30 August and the Newbury stops are absent from the table, while they are all there for Saturday 29 August.

What it means for you

  • If you live in Wash Common or Greenham and use the town centre in the evening, the last bus home is now late enough to sit through a film or a full evening out. Route 2 is the later of the two, at 23:30 from the Wharf.
  • Route 8’s Sunday gap is the one to plan around. If you take the 11:35 out to Tesco, the next bus in that direction is three hours later.
  • The Sunday 34 gives West Ilsley, East Ilsley, Beedon and Chieveley a Sunday bus, and gives Newbury a Sunday connection to Didcot Parkway for onward trains.
  • Single fares on most services are capped at £3 until 31 December 2026 under the national bus fare cap. The same guidance says the cap falls to £2 from 1 January 2027. The council’s announcement mentions the £3 figure but not the reduction that follows it.
  • Times can change before they start. Both operators publish live timetables, and it is worth checking the date you plan to travel rather than trusting a screenshot.

For the rest of the local travel picture, see our pages on Newbury roadworks and travel, Newbury train times to London and parking in Newbury. If you are working out what to do with a Sunday now that the buses run, our guide to things to do in Newbury is a place to start.