Travelling to College
Apply for a college bus pass
The college runs dedicated bus routes across, East Cambridgeshire, South Norfolk and Suffolk, using an enhanced home-to-college bus service managed by Zeelo. The Zeelo service includes an online booking platform, 24/7 customer support, live vehicle tracking and status notifications for every service.
Whether you've already applied or are planning to apply, our bus routes offer a convenient, reliable way to get to campus without the hassle. It’s the perfect time to apply to Abbeygate Sixth Form College and experience all we have to offer.
Financial support to help with costs of bus travel
Assistance with travel costs may be available through Suffolk County Council’s Post 16 Discretionary Travel scheme; further details and application forms are available on the Suffolk County Council website: www.suffolkonboard.com
Students who may require financial support can apply for the 16-19 Bursary Fund. Successful applicants can offset their funding award towards this cost.
- Your household income must be below £30k to be eligible for support with travel and other costs associated with your studies.
- If your household income is between £30k and £40k and reside over 3 miles from the college, you may be able to apply for travel on our college-run routes (other restrictions may apply).
Register your interest for bus travel
Termly bus passes will be available for purchase from 1st August 2025. In the meantime, we kindly ask you to register your interest below. All bus tickets are sold on a termly basis and are £408 per term per student.
- Tickets are sold on a first come first served basis.
- The Autumn termly pass will cost £408 per student, per route
- Follow the steps to create your Zeelo account. Please create the account in your name, by using your email address or whichever address you would like to receive future comms about the service. After which, you can add the names of the those who will be using the bus to travel to and from college.
- Book onto specific journeys to and from the stop closest to your home to college
- You will receive your tickets via email to show the driver, or, if the student does not have a smartphone, they can just say their name when boarding the bus
- If there are no convenient stops, please use the 'request a stop option'. Zeelo continually review the routes and always look to optimise and improve the service for all riders; every stop is reviewed by a member of the team and we will look to accommodate new stops where possible.
Email our team about transport: transport@easterneducationgroup.ac.uk
Other bus tickets, public services and discounts
There are a number of publicly available bus routes which provide easy access for students from a wide area. Please refer to www.suffolkonboard.com for more details. Some of the commercial companies who provide the bus services on behalf of Suffolk County Council offer their own discounts and travel passes for students:
Public bus routes
- Chambers | Term tickets for Abbeygate and West Suffolk College - for travel to and from places including Clare, Great Cornard and Sudbury.
Endeavour Card
Are you aged 16-19? If so, with a cashless Endeavour Card you can get at least 25% discount off full price adult fares on participating bus services.
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It is for anyone aged 16-19 in full time learning or work with training
- 25% discount with most bus services in Suffolk (e.g. Connecting Communities)
- The card is free and will include a picture of you and your date of birth
- Cashless card that can be topped up electronically via endeavour.suffolkonboard.com
Train
Bury St Edmunds has a train station, which is a 20 minute walk from the main college campus.
- Walking directions from train station (Google Maps)
For more information on routes, please click below:
Help with train travel costs
There are two rail cards which are available to our students, to help with travel costs:
- The 16 - 17 Saver card is £30 and is valid for one year or until your 18th birthday, whichever comes first. As a card holder you can enjoy 50% off standard anytime, off-peak, advanced and season rail tickets helping you save money on trips into town, days out to the coast, travel to college or weekend festivals - as many times as you like. Find out more and how to apply at www.16-17saver.co.uk
- The 16 - 25 Railcard can save you up to 1/3 off a wide range of tickets, along with days out, restaurants, hotels and much more. Find out more and how to apply at www.16-25railcard.co.uk
Walk
The main campus is a ten minute walk from the centre of Bury St Edmunds, on the road leading to Newmarket (A14).
Cycle
We encourage all our students and staff to lead a healthy and active lifestyle and where possible, to cycle to college. We have a number of covered places across the campus, where you can keep your bikes secure.
Suffolk County Council offers information on cycle routes within suffolk, and you can also plan the safest journey on cyclestreets.net. For details on how to download the CycleStreets app, visit cyclestreets.net/mobile
Cars, Motorcycles and Scooters
Parking facilities are available at the college. Parking at the college is currently free and a permit can be applied for via reception. We do have more students than parking spaces so these are restricted to Year 13 students and priority is given based on distance travelled.
Travel Costs Assistance
Suffolk County Council may offer assistance with travel arrangements through the council's Post 16 Discretionary Travel Scheme. Further details and how to apply can be found on Suffolk on Board.
Alternatively Abbeygate Sixth Form College may be able to assist students through the 16-19 Bursary Fund available by application and eligibility is dependent on personal circumstances.
Please be aware that financial support is dependant on government legislation and is therefore subject to change. Whatever your circumstances, you can always consult with us before applying for any course.
Apply for a College BursaryPlease click the links for details on how to apply for travel assistance from the following county councils:
