First Glasgow received a commendation in the Public Transport Operator of the Year category, while First Aberdeen has been recognised for its launch of the world’s first hydrogen double deckers in 2021
First Bus Scotland enjoyed success at the 2022 Scottish Transport Awards, receiving a sustainability award for the completion of the UK’s largest electric vehicle charging hub at its Caledonia depot. Located in the south side of Glasgow, the project saw the depot transformed, with the installation of 160 rapid charging points installed over the last 12 months. Its completion allows 150 electric vehicles to be charged at one time and was described as a landmark moment in First Bus’ journey towards being emission-free by 2035.
First is continuing to invest heavily in its decarbonisation journey, confirming a further £35 million for 74 new electric buses and supporting infrastructure in Glasgow and Aberdeen. Work to transform its Scotstoun and Aberdeen depots into electric vehicle charging hubs is expected to take 12 months, with the arrival of the buses set to mark an important milestone for its fleets in each city.
The awards night also saw two of First Glasgow’s bus drivers recognised for going above and beyond the call of duty. Billy Bell, a driver with First for over 11 years, saved the life of passenger John McCann who suffered a cardiac arrest on board his bus in April 2021. Billy was driving on route 57 at the time and was alerted a passenger had taken ill. He stopped and began administering CPR, at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. Billy assisted paramedics upon their arrival by continuing chest compressions for a further 15 minutes, while the paramedics set up a defibrillator to support John and take him to hospital.
In January 2022, fellow First Glasgow driver and army reservist Mark Macduff, based at Scotstoun depot, was driving on route 3 when he noticed smoke coming from the road ahead and another bus with its hazard lights on. After seeing there had been an accident, Mark took control of the situation using his military medical experience and categorised the patients’ degrees of severity, pointing out the potential for internal bleeding for the car driver to the paramedic. As a result of Mark’s actions, the three injured people in the car – one with a shattered knee and two with internal bleeding – survived the road traffic collision.
Duncan Cameron, Managing Director of First Bus Scotland, said: “We are delighted to receive recognition for the transformation of our Caledonia depot into the UK’s largest electric vehicle charging hub over the last 12 months. We’re proud of the progress that we’ve made across Scotland so far and we are excited to continue that progress in Scotstoun and Aberdeen over the next 12 months.
“It was fantastic to see both Billy and Mark recognised for their remarkable actions going above and beyond what could be expected from any person. We recognise our drivers can be faced with challenging situations at any time and to see how calmly and selflessly both Billy and Mark acted under intense pressure has made everyone at First Bus proud to be working alongside them.”
