FAQ

StopBoard is a free, real-time bus tracking app for North West England. It's a digital version of the live departure boards you see at bus stops, available on your phone. It shows live arrival times, countdowns, and bus tracking for any stop in the region. No app download needed. It works in your browser.

StopBoard uses official bus data from the Bus Open Data Service (BODS), provided by the UK Department for Transport. This includes real-time vehicle locations and scheduled timetable data. The data is published under the Open Government Licence v3.0, © Crown copyright.

StopBoard uses a combination of live GPS distance, schedule adherence, and real-time vehicle tracking to estimate arrival times. When a bus is tracked live, these estimates are more accurate than timetable times alone, but factors like traffic, driver changes, or GPS signal gaps can affect accuracy. If a bus isn't being tracked live, StopBoard falls back to the scheduled timetable time.

"Live" means StopBoard is actively tracking that bus using real-time GPS data. The arrival time updates as the bus moves. "Scheduled" means there's no live tracking available for that bus right now, so StopBoard is showing the timetable time instead. Scheduled times don't account for delays or cancellations.

"Approaching" means the bus is live-tracked and getting close to your stop. "Due" means the bus is expected to arrive within the next few minutes. If a bus shows as "Due" for too long, it may have passed your stop or lost its GPS signal.

A bus can disappear for a few reasons. It may have passed your stop already. Its GPS signal may have dropped out, so StopBoard can no longer track it. Or the operator may have cancelled the service without updating the data. If a bus was showing as "Due" and then vanished, it most likely passed your stop or lost its GPS connection.

Tap the search icon and type your stop name. If you're already at the stop, tap the location button to snap to your nearest stop. This requires location permission, but your location data is never stored or collected.

Tap the bookmark icon at the top of any stop page. Your bookmarks are stored entirely on your device and never leave it. They'll be there next time you visit, no account needed. Clearing your browser cache will remove them.

Tap the share icon at the top of any stop page. This copies the stop link so you can send it to anyone. They don't need an account or an app to view it.

Yes. Tap "Add to Home Screen" in your browser to install StopBoard as a PWA. No app store needed.

No. StopBoard needs an internet connection to fetch live bus data and scheduled timetables. Without a connection, arrival times can't be loaded or updated.

Only if you tap the location button to find your nearest stop. Your location is sent to the server to find nearby stops, then immediately discarded. It is never stored. You can use StopBoard without granting location permission.

StopBoard covers bus stops across North West England, including Liverpool, Manchester, Lancashire, Chester, and surrounding areas. The data comes from the national Bus Open Data Service, filtered to the North West region.

This usually means no buses on that route are being tracked by their operator right now. It can happen late at night, during service gaps, or if the operator's GPS equipment is offline. You'll still see scheduled timetable times under "Later Today."

StopBoard currently focuses on North West England. Expansion to other regions is possible since the data source covers the whole of England, but there are no confirmed plans right now.

No. StopBoard does not use cookies. Analytics are collected using a self-hosted, cookieless tool. No personal data is collected, and nothing is shared with third parties.

StopBoard collects anonymous page view data to understand which stops are most used. No personal information is collected. Your location, if used, is discarded immediately after finding nearby stops. Bookmarks are stored on your device only. Nothing is shared with third parties.

Yes. StopBoard is completely free to use with no ads, no subscriptions, and no account required.

You can reach out by email at hello@stopboard.uk. Bug reports, feature suggestions, and general feedback are all welcome.