You’ve arrived at university! You might be new to Worcester, in fact you might be new to the UK! Or maybe you already know the city but are seeing it through new eyes. It’s time to get out there and discover your new home.
Whether you just want to travel easily between campuses or want to go a bit further and see Malvern, Birmingham or beyond, there are ways that the University of Worcester can help you move around more easily.
Walking
Worcester is a small city and one of the easiest ways to get around is on foot. Strolling from St John’s Campus to the city centre will take you 20-30 minutes, depending how much effort you want to put in. The Sabrina footbridge is a much quieter route when crossing the river, but watch out for cyclists!
Once you’re in the city, you’ll find a great selection of shops, restaurants and entertainment as well as the beautiful cathedral amongst other hidden historical treats.
There are a number of scenic walks around Worcester, taking in the riverside, canal side and the city’s many parks. Have a look at Worcester’s Tourist Information for more details and ideas for what to explore next!
Bikes
Cycling is a convenient, low cost way to get healthier and happier. Riding an e-bike is great fun. Cycling two miles takes about 15 minutes, making it one of the quickest ways to get between University of Worcester campuses and through the city.
Woo Bike Share offers a great deal to students and staff who want to get about on two wheels. The 100 bike fleet has 50 pedal bikes and 50 electric e-bikes. All students can join Woo Bike Share, no matter whether new or existing, undergraduate or postgraduate, full-time or part-time, home, EU or International. Join by signing up online and paying a £45 annual membership fee. You can hire pedal bikes up to seven days and e-bikes for 24 hours. When you’ve finished, return the bike key (and battery for e-bikes) to the City or St John’s Campus.
The bikes are regularly checked and maintained by Spokes, who operate a weekly bike shop on the St John’s Campus where you can also buy a great value reconditioned bike for about £65.
If you’ve got your own bike, there are locations throughout the University where you can store your bicycle. The vast majority are Sheffield type hoops and many are located under cover.
There is also secure bicycle storage located at St John’s Campus; to access it simply visit Security (located behind St John’s reception) with your Student ID card. A member of the Security Team will be able to update your access card to enable you to use the facility.
Important information: if you are living in Halls of residence, your bicycle is not covered by the University contents insurance. You will need to make your own arrangements to have suitable insurance cover.
Buses
To travel easily between the St John’s Campus and the city centre, First Bus runs a regular, daytime bus service. The number 31 bus runs between St John’s Campus and the Crowngate Bus Station.
Bus 31 departs from stand E in Crowngate Bus Station (WR1 3PA) and you can either get off at the University gates on Oldbury Road, or stay on the bus until its route takes it through the campus and stops by the Students’ Union. Buses run every 20 minutes, Monday to Saturday. You can check the timetable on the First Bus journey planner.
For discounted travel, the “Student 10Journey” ticket is available to University of Worcester students. They can be used on any First local bus service in the Worcester area and give 10 single journeys. These tickets are available exclusively through First’s mTickets app, which you can download from the First Travel Apps webpage.
To get the University’s discount, you will need to register the app with a valid University of Worcester email address.
Rail travel
From Worcester there are some great rail links, from local areas of beauty, such as Malvern, to cities such as Birmingham (45 minutes travel time) and London (under 3 hours travel time). Use the National Rail journey planner to find out when the next departures are!
If you’re under the age of 26, you can apply for a Young Person’s Railcard®. You can buy one online or in person at your nearest staffed station.
If you are a mature student, aged over 26 and in full-time study, you may also be entitled to a Young Person’s Railcard®. You can collect an application form from any staffed station, or directly from firstpoint. Once you have completed your details on the form, firstpoint can stamp it to confirm that you are in full-time education. You can also apply online.
For more information, please visit the 16-25 Railcard website.
Car
The University strongly encourage both students and staff to find other ways of travelling, rather than bringing your car to campus. However, if you need to drive and park on campus, there are several options available.
There is a Car Share scheme which allows you to save money and benefit the environment. Staff and students can register the details of any journeys they wish to share and the system will then search for others who are going the same way, leaving it to them to make contact and arrange to travel together. The software behind University of Worcester’s system has been provided by the UK’s largest car-sharing network, Liftshare, which has established more than 1,200 schemes for communities across the UK. You can find out more on the carshare website.
If you are planning to park on campus, you can either Pay and Display or purchase a parking permit. A link to Pay & Display charges can be found online and Student Parking Permit Prices are also available.
To apply for a parking permit, you will need your University username and password to log into the system.
Once you have paid for your permit online, you can collect it from firstpoint during their opening times (Monday – Friday, 8.30am – 5.30pm).
If you are a Blue Badge holder you are permitted to park free of charge, but you will still need to register and display a University of Worcester parking permit.
If you have a question about parking on campus, please email: carparking@worc.ac.uk
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