How do I get to the airport?

"How do I get to the airport?" is one of the most-asked travel questions, and the answer is spread across rail, tram, bus and coach operators. This guide takes what someone types ("Manchester airport", "LHR"), finds the airport, and lists everything that serves it, with live train departures and any disruption nearby. It covers all 50 airports in England, Scotland and Wales with scheduled flights.

What you need

• Python 3.9 or later, and pip install requests
• A TransCAPI key: sign up free, then export TRANSCAPI_KEY=your_key

The code

import os
from datetime import datetime
from zoneinfo import ZoneInfo

import requests

API = "https://api.transcapi.com/v1"
HEADERS = {"X-Api-Key": os.environ["TRANSCAPI_KEY"]}
UK = ZoneInfo("Europe/London")


def uk_time(iso):
    return datetime.fromisoformat(iso).astimezone(UK).strftime("%H:%M") if iso else "--:--"


# 1. Find the airport from what someone types
place = requests.get(f"{API}/places.json", headers=HEADERS,
                     params={"query": "Manchester airport", "type": "airport"}).json()["member"][0]

# 2. Everything that serves it
airport = requests.get(f"{API}/airports/{place['iata']}.json", headers=HEADERS).json()
print(f"{airport['name']} ({airport['iata']})\n")

print("Trains")
for station in airport["rail_stations"][:2]:
    board = requests.get(f"{API}/rail/station_timetables/{station['crs_code']}.json",
                         headers=HEADERS).json()
    print(f"  {station['name']} ({station['distance']} m from the terminal)")
    for d in board["departures"][:4]:
        print(f"    {uk_time(d['aimed_departure_time'])}  exp {uk_time(d['expected_departure_time'])}"
              f"  {d['destination']:<24} {d['status']}")

print("\nTrams, metro, buses and coaches at the terminals")
for stop in airport["stops"][:6]:
    lines = ", ".join(sorted({l["line"] for l in stop["lines"]}))
    where = f"{stop['name']} ({stop['indicator']})" if stop.get("indicator") else stop["name"]
    print(f"  {stop['mode']:<6} {where[:56]:<56} {lines}")

if airport["disruptions"]:
    print("\nDisruptions nearby")
    for d in airport["disruptions"][:3]:
        print(f"  [{d['severity']}] {d['summary']}")

Run it:

$ python airport_transport.py
Manchester Airport (MAN)

Trains
  Manchester Airport (259 m from the terminal)
    12:04  exp 12:04  Edinburgh                on_time
    12:07  exp 12:07  Manchester Piccadilly    on_time
    12:17  exp 12:17  Blackpool North          on_time
    12:25  exp 12:25  Holyhead                 on_time
  Styal (2394 m from the terminal)
    12:05  exp 12:05  Crewe                    on_time
    12:45  exp 12:45  Manchester Piccadilly    on_time

Trams, metro, buses and coaches at the terminals
  tram   Manchester Airport (Manchester Metrolink) (To Manchester Navy Line
  bus    Manchester Airport The Station (Stand A)                 120, 121, 181, 422, 424, 541, 819, 828, 829, G4, UK072, UK074, UK076, UK930, UK980, UKN23
  bus    Manchester Airport The Station (Stand B)                 120, 121, 170, 172, 181, 421, 422, 424, 541, 811, 819, G4
  bus    Manchester Airport The Station (Arrivals)                103, 248, 368, 43
  bus    Manchester Airport The Station (Stand C)                 170, 172, 177, 811, 829
  bus    Manchester Airport The Station (Stand D)                 103

Disruptions nearby
  [minor] Lines reopened: major disruption between York and Newcastle / Middlesbrough / Sunderland expected until 13:00
  [minor] Amended late night / early morning service in the Manchester area from Monday 5 to Friday 9 October

Real output, 7 October 2026. The disruption appears because TransPennine trains from Manchester Airport run to Newcastle.

How it works

1. Finding the airport

/v1/places.json with type=airport matches airport names, towns and codes, so "Heathrow", "LHR" and "Leeds airport" all work. Without the filter, a search that's plainly about an airport puts it first, and a city search ("Manchester") puts the city first and its airport after.

2. Everything that serves it

/v1/airports/{iata}.json returns the airport's terminal entrances and, measured from them:

• rail_stations within 3 km, nearest first, so Heathrow lists its four stations and Edinburgh lists Edinburgh Gateway, a tram ride away;
• stops: tram, metro, bus and coach stops within 500 m, each with the lines that call there;
• disruptions in force within 3 km: bus, tram, National Rail engineering works and incidents, and TfL.

3. Live departures

Each station's crs_code goes to /v1/rail/station_timetables for live times, platforms and delays from National Rail; each stop's atcocode goes to /v1/bus/stop_timetables. To plan the whole trip, pass a terminal's position to /v1/journey.json, which also tells you the chance of making each change, worth knowing when there's a flight to catch.

What isn't here

Flights. There's no open UK flight schedule or departures data, so TransCAPI covers getting to and from the airport, not the flight itself. Northern Ireland's airports aren't included, in line with the rest of the API.

All the fields are in the airports docs.

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Try it. A free key gives you 1,000 requests a day with no card. Every endpoint covers Great Britain: see coverage for the parts that are regional.