FAQs

PickMeUp is an on-demand ride-sharing minibus service. It picks you up from a ‘virtual bus stop’ or a physical bus stop within a short walkable distance of where you are. The intelligent software works out the best way to take you and our other passengers to your chosen destinations. Simply register your credit or debit card, or pay via PayPal and we’ll be with you in around 15 minutes. You can think of it like a car pool, only bigger – and you never have to drive yourself! It’s cheaper than a taxi and comes when you want it.

You can book your PickMeUp seat quickly and easily:
1 – Download the app.
2 – Simply register your bank card or PayPal account. You can also choose to pay by cash or card on the bus if you prefer.
3 – Request a pick up.
4 – The app will confirm your booking, and give you the location of your ‘virtual bus stop’ a short walkable distance from you.
5 – In around 15 minutes*, your comfortable air-conditioned PickMeUp minibus will arrive and pick you up.
6 – PickMeUp’s intelligent software works out the best way to take you and our other passengers to your chosen destinations. We may pick up and/or drop off some other passengers on the way to your stop. This makes your journey very affordable and helps to save fuel and emissions in your area.
* Expected average wait time is around 15 minutes.

Trips on PickMeUp usually cost between £2 and £3.50 based on the distance travelled in line with local bus services.

To find your the exact fare, please enter your location and destination into the app. Alternatively, please contact our PickMeUp assistant for details.

However, until 31st October 2023, the maximum fare on PickMeUp or any other Carousel bus service will be £2! Find out more about this offer here.

Whilst it’s really simple to book a journey on our app, yes, you can choose to pay on the bus with cash or contactless card or device. Your friendly driver will be able to help you if you need assistance.

Yes, of course. You’re welcome to use your (valid) Carousel Zone A or Wycombe SMARTzone tickets, alongside the Yoti CitizenCard and Travel Choice discounts. In order to travel with one of these, please choose to pay on the bus. Your driver will assess your card for validity when you board the minibus.

Yes, concessionary pass holders can travel free of charge after 9:00am. In order to claim this, you’ll need to do one of two things:

• If using the app: select that you’re a concessionary pass holder during the signup process or by going to “Account Type” in the app if you’ve already signed up.
• If booking by phone: make sure the first time you book over the phone, you tell the operator that you’re a concessionary pass holder. After this, we’ll keep this information on record so you won’t need to tell us every time.

You’ll need to show your valid concessionary pass (and concessionary companion pass if travelling with a companion) to the driver when being picked up.

PickMeUp operates Monday to Friday (except public holidays) from 0600 hrs until 1900 hrs. We are really excited to bring this new service to High Wycombe!

The best way to book is by using the app, but if you prefer to use your web browser, you can book using the link below.

Click here to book your ride in a web browser (opens in a new tab).

Yes, absolutely! Give us a ring on 01494 296021 between 0600 hrs and 1900 hrs (weekdays only) and your friendly PickMeUp assistant will be able to book the journey for you. This includes instant journeys and advanced bookings, as well as repeat bookings.

Contact us.

Currently, PickMeUp covers High Wycombe, Booker and Wooburn Green. If you need to travel anywhere within this zone, we’ve got you covered! Check out the zone map by clicking here.

The number of passengers you will share your journey with varies, depending on the demand of other passengers going in the same direction as you. PickMeUp minibuses can comfortably accommodate up to 20 people, with 17 seated and 3 standing (or 14 seated, 3 standing and 1 wheelchair).

When you book a ride, one of our fleet of Mercedes City 45 Sprinters will collect you from your ‘virtual’ or physical bus stop. Each minibus offers you comfortable high head-rests, air conditioning, USB chargers, free WiFi and low-loading facilities so they are pushchair and wheelchair friendly.

Download the PickMeUp mobile app on the App Store or Google Play to start booking your journeys. Use the links below or search “PickMeUp High Wycombe” on your app store.

Click here to download the app from App Store.

Click here to download the app from Google Play.

Here at Carousel Buses, we prioritise the comfort and safety of our customers. When you book a PickMeUp journey, we connect you with a vehicle operated by a well-trained, courteous, and experienced driver. We value your feedback and love to hear from you. Please let us know about your experience after each PickMeUp journey – you’ll help us to make PickMeUp even better for all future customers.

Yes, you can book your journeys in advance via the app or by contacting our PickMeUp assistant.

PickMeUp’s intelligent software works out the best way to take you and our other passengers to your chosen destinations. We are allowed to use bus lanes and will calculate the best routes for each journey based on real-time information to ensure that all passengers arrive as soon as possible. Unlike taxi journeys, you will never pay more for your PickMeUp journey even if the traffic means your journey takes a little longer, or we divert to a slightly longer route to save you time.

The quickest way to reach a PickMeUp assistant is to phone us between 06:00 and 19:00. Please visit the contact us web page for full details.

For the safety of our passengers our drivers will not stop for people who haven’t already booked their PickMeUp journey using the app or via the PickMeUp assistant.

Sometimes there may be exceptional circumstances due to road closures, or peak-period traffic grid-lock for example. If the service is running late, we will keep you updated via the PickMeUp app and let you know when your minibus will be with you.

PickMeUp’s intelligent software works out the best way to take you and our other passengers to your chosen destinations via main roads and also smaller roads within residential areas where this is the best solution for our customers accessible. This will improve door to door connectivity for passengers living within residential areas with smaller roads that are not currently served by scheduled bus routes.

PickMeUp minibuses are spacious 17 seaters, with low-loading facilities to ensure they are wheelchair and pushchair accessible. They can hold up to 20 people and there is plenty of room on board for shopping and luggage.

Folding bikes can be carried, in accordance with our conditions of carriage (www.carouselbuses.co.uk/conditions-carriage). However full size, non-foldable bikes are not permitted on the service.

We welcome and encourage assistance dogs on our buses and they are carried and welcome aboard at all times. We would ask you, though, to ensure you comply with any reasonable instruction given by the bus driver whilst you and your dog are on board. Please review our usual conditions of carriage for detailed information and guidance: www.carouselbuses.co.uk/conditions-carriage.

If travelling with children under five years old, you don’t need to buy them a ticket because they can travel for free with a fare-paying adult. As with all of our regular bus services, if you’re travelling with several children, in the unlikely event that the minibus is full, we may unfortunately not be able to fit your group on board. If this happens, we’ll of course refund your ticket payment immediately, and you’d be welcome to book again and get picked up by the next available (hopefully less full!) minibus. Children aged five and over need to travel with a regular purchased ticket.

PickMeUp is designed to provide a public transport option in areas where traditional buses don’t operate. You won’t be offered a PickMeUp ride if your journey can be made on a regular bus service that meets the following criteria:

• It’s scheduled to arrive within 30 minutes
• It is no more than 600m walk away to board the bus, and the destination is no more than 600m walk from the drop off point
• The journey can be made directly without changing buses

If these conditions apply, we’ll show you a journey plan for the regular bus service.

The PickMeUp app is available for both iPhone and Android. It’s fully compatible for iOS 10 or later, and 5.0 Lollipop. It’s free, fast and easy to download, so just click and you’ll be ready to jump into your first PickMeUp in no time!

You can set up your PickMeUp account quickly and easily…
Step 1 – Download the app: Click here to download PickMeUp for iPhone Click here to download PickMeUp for Android.
Step 2 – Select “sign me up” on the app home screen.
Step 3 – Give us a few details about yourself – Your name, email address and phone number so we can contact you.
Step 4 – Review and accept our terms and conditions.
Step 5 – Simply register your credit or debit card, or pay via PayPal.
Step 6 – You’re all set and ready to book your first PickMeUp!

Step 1 – Ideally make sure you allow the app to access your current location. This way the map screen of the app will default to where you are.
Step 2 – Use the location button, or move the purple map pin to your desired location and hit “set pickup.” You can also manually type your desired pick up address in the search bar – where you can also save favourites and view your recent pick up locations.
Step 3 – If you want to take any friends with you, use the + and – buttons to set the number of passengers.
Step 4 – Type in, or move the orange map pin to set your desired drop-off location and hit “set drop-off.” Again you can select your recent, or favourite drop off points here to make this easier once you are up and running!
Step 5 – Review the journey offer (price and timing) in the proposal screen, and if it looks good, press “Book This Journey.”
Step 6 – The app will direct you to walk to a nearby “virtual bus stop” and will show you on the map where the vehicle that will be picking you up is. You will also see the vehicle registration details. That’s it! You’re all set to travel. When you’re on the move, the map screen on the app will track your vehicle and give you a predicted ETA which will update as you travel. When you’ve finished your ride, don’t forget to rate your trip!

When you’ve booked your journey, the PickMeUp app will display the pick-up location where the minibus will meet you, at your ‘virtual bus stop’ or a physical bus stop. To make the service as economical to run as possible so that we can pass on the savings to our passengers, your actual pick-up spot may be a short walkable distance from exactly where you asked to get picked up.

Your ‘virtual bus stop’ will usually be a nearby street corner. Sometimes, the app will give you the address or business name at your ‘virtual bus stop’ to help you find it. The exact pick up location will always be displayed in the app. You can use the app to track the progress of your PickMeUp driver.

Zoom out from your pick-up spot or click the small white vehicle icon in the bottom right, and you’ll be able to follow the vehicle on the map as it approaches. Make sure you’re at your ‘virtual bus stop’ (or physical bus stop) and ready to be picked up when your driver arrives! The app will count down the minutes to your vehicle’s arrival, and we’ll send you a text when the vehicle is two minutes away and again when it arrives. If you need assistance, you can reply to the text and our Live Support team will help you. You can also call your driver directly by using the small phone icon once the driver has arrived.

Important! If you’re more than 60 seconds late, your PickMeUp driver will unfortunately have to leave. It wouldn’t be fair to our other passengers to keep them waiting and to delay their journeys as a result of having to wait for one late passenger.

Your virtual bus stop will usually be located on a main road, away from any major junction. The bus will not travel down roads which are not considered wide enough for a minibus to safely travel, or where this would cause an obstruction, or result in unreasonable delays for other travellers.

If you think you’ve left something on one of our vehicles then call us, as soon as possible. We’ll do our best to track it down for you. If we have your item then collection can be arranged from our offices in High Wycombe.

We’re delighted to hear good things about our drivers. We’re proud of our team and always like to know when someone has provided you with exceptional customer service. You can rate your journey in the app using a star rating system. Alternatively, please let us know about your experience by contacting us.

Contact us.

We’re really sorry to hear that your journey didn’t go as well as it could have. Please tell us what went wrong so that we can look into it.

Contact us.