New Bluestar bus routes from 19 February 2023

Following the recent announcement that First Bus, City Reds are leaving Southampton, we will be adding some new routes to our network.  Many of the routes are the same as City Reds, but some route numbers will change. 

The main details can be found below. Download our new network map, where you can see where each route goes.  

Timetables are now available to view on the links below and there's even more good news! Bluestar 19 will now be every 15 mins, Monday to Friday, and every 20 minutes on Saturday. Our existing Bluestar 7 from Sholing to City Centre will have some additional evening journeys - details and timetables can be viewed below.

Route No	First No	Route Details	Frequency/Timetable
Bluestar 7	n/a	Good news, Bluestar 7 will have additional evening journeys. 20:45 and 22:45 City Centre - Sholing, 20:56 Sholing - City Centre	PDF timetable
Bluestar 10	First 9	City - Woolston - Peartree - Bitterne - Sholing	every hour
Bluestar 13	First 13	City - Woolston - Merryoak - Bitterne - Harefield	every 30 minutes
Bluestar 14	First 8	City - Northam - Bitterne - West End - Chartwell Green - Hedge End Superstores & Rail Station	every 30 minutes
Bluestar 15	First 6	City - Woolston - Netley - Hamble	every 30 minutes
Bluestar 19	First 3	Thornhill (Hinkler Road) - Kathleen Road - Woolston - City - Shirley - Maybush Corner - Hospital - Lordshill	every 15 minutes M-F and every 20 mins Saturdays
Bluestar 20	First 7	City - Portswood - St Denys - Midanbury - Townhill Park	every 15 minutes

We recommend you download our bus app, where you can plan your journey, view timetables, buy tickets as well as being able to track buses in live times. Plus receive any service updates that may affect your journey.

All our buses accept contactless payments as well as cash, and our drivers do carry change.  However, for best value tickets these are available on our app.

Tickets and Fares

We have a new fare zone map that will come into effect on the 19th of February. This map gives an overview of our new and existing routes that we cover within each zone.

We also have a promotional pass that operates for certain routes within the Southampton zone – shown here in our promo pass map. Some of the routes may continue outside of the promo map, so if you live outside the boundary and wish to travel to these locations, you need to ensure you have the correct zonal ticket by referring to the main Bluestar fare zone map.

Please be aware that any tickets previously purchased through First will not be valid to use on our buses. If you have a ticket that runs past the 19th of February and will possibly want a refund, you will need to speak to First. Tickets for any of our routes can be bought in advance from the travel shop in Southampton.