Terminal 5 information

The new Terminal 5 route

RailAir coaches are now serving Terminal 5 directly from Reading with a journey time of around 35 minutes (during off peak).  The departures area of Terminal 5 is now our first stop with Terminals 1, 2 and 3 following shortly after.  (Coaches will only call into Terminal 5 if there are passengers wishing to travel there).

Returning coaches to Reading will continue to depart from stands 1 and 2 at Central Bus Station but will now additionally call into stand 10 at Terminal 5 Bus and Coach Station.

Going to Central Bus Station?

Passengers who wish to go directly to Central Bus Station should ensure that they inform the driver when boarding.

Flying in or out of Terminal 4?

Heathrow Express Connections

Passengers who are travelling to Terminal 4, are advised to use the Heathrow Connect from Terminal 1.  The Heathrow Express operates from Terminal 5 but not directly to Terminal 4.  To access Terminal 4 from Terminal 5 you will need to take the Heathrow Express to Heathrow Central (Terminals 1, 2 and 3), change here and use the Heathrow Connect to Terminal 4 (this could result in a wait of 15 minutes for both trains if you are unfortunate enough to have just missed a service). 

We continue to advise our passengers to alight at Terminal 1 and use the Heathrow Connect trains to Terminal 4 as this will typically be quicker.  If you wish to use the Heathrow Express from Terminal 5, please inform the driver when boarding the coach at Reading.

Free local Bus Services to Terminal 4

There are also frequent Bus links from Terminal 5 to Terminal 4.  The 482 and 490 services depart from stand 6 or 9 from Terminal 5 Bus and Coach Station.  To access the Bus and Coach Station from the departures area of Terminal 5, use the lifts adjacent to where the coach drops you off and go down to the arrivals level.  These Bus services (482 and 490) operate up to 8 times an hour and take a few minutes to get to Terminal 4. Both are free of charge.

Passengers returning from Terminal 4 have the option of using the Heathrow Express or Heathrow Connect to Heathrow Central (for Central Bus Station) and then join the RailAir coach from Central Bus Station.  Alternatively, use the 482 or 490 from Terminal 4 to Terminal 5.

Information for the elderly or disabled when accessing Terminal 4

Passengers using the bus services between Terminals 4 and 5 should consider the amount of luggage that they have as this may not be convenient for the elderly or disabled.  However, there is a BAA Help Bus service which will take you directly to Terminal 4 from various locations around the airport.  Please see www.baa.com  or call 020 8745 6261 for further information.

Purchasing tickets at Terminal 5

Tickets for RailAir are currently available from the National Express Sales Desk on the arrivals level of Terminal 5.  When exiting arrivals, follow the Terminal building to the left and the National Express Sales Desk is at the far end (near Costa Coffee) conveniently located close to stand 10 of the Bus and Coach Station. There are self service machines and a sales desk.

RailAir does however recommend that passengers purchase their tickets on-line at www.railair.com in advance.