Dozens of operators and individuals are recognised as finalists for 19 different awards
The UK Bus Awards’ 2018 shortlist was announced across social media on Tuesday 9 October, with over 100 individuals, organisations and projects claiming their place in the London final. The awards ceremony will take place at Troxy in London’s East End on 20 November.
Mark Yexley, Chairman for the UK Bus Awards, said: “The awards are a symbol of excellence within our industry, and the quality of the 2018 entries reflect this. The judging process is very tough, and all our finalists should be proud of their achievements.
“It’s inspiring to see how much commitment there is from employees and organisations to enhance all areas of bus travel. We wish everybody the best of luck and look forward to celebrating at the presentation ceremony on 20 November.”
The finalists are as follows:
Bus & the Community Award
BUSter’s Beach Party – Yellow Buses; Drive On – HCT Group; Charity of Choice – Lothian Buses; Second Chance – RATP Dev London; Charity and community – Reading Buses; The #BeNiceBus – Stagecoach Group; Newham Safer Travel Project – Stagecoach London; and Christmas fundraising campaign – Stagecoach North East
Engineer of the Year
Colin Barnes – Go North East; Graham Smith – Nottingham City Transport; Terry Absalom – Stagecoach London; and Ben Coghlan – Stagecoach Manchester
Environment Award
Electric vehicles – Lothian Buses; Liverpool Bus Alliance – Merseytravel and Partners; World’s largest fleet of bio-gas double-deckers – Nottingham City Transport; and World’s first zero emission electric double-decker – Optare
TfL Award for London Bus Garage of the Year
Twickenham – Abellio London; Brixton – Arriva London South; Perivale – Metroline; Tolworth – RATP Dev London; and Barking – Stagecoach London
Leadership & Inspiration Award
Oliver Monahan – Arriva Southern Counties; Michael Gatenby – Arriva Yorkshire; and Jim Thorpe – Uno Bus
Making Buses a Better Choice
Winchester Bus Station – Hampshire County Council; Liverpool Bus Alliance – Merseytravel and Partners; Route 64 – Stagecoach South; Bus Services in New Residential Developments Guidance – Stagecoach Bus; X10 Stagecoach Express – Stagecoach Yorkshire; and West Midlands Bus Alliance – Transport for West Midlands and Partners
The Award for Marketing Initiative of the Year
Big Days Out campaign – Go North East; Better by Bus – Merseytravel and Partners; Service 10 – Stagecoach North Scotland; The Comet, come fly with us – Uno Bus; Meet Violet, she’s on her way – Uno Bus Northampton; and The Pops and the Cheshire Cat – Warrington’s Own Buses
New Horizons Award
Connected Apps – Arriva London; BusMark – Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport; Bus Driver Routeway – Go North East; Social seating – Go South Coast, Swindon’s Bus Company; On-Board Passenger Information System – Lothian Buses; How do I catch a bus? – Stagecoach East Scotland; and VecTive – Vectare
Putting Passengers First
Make My Mainline – The Burnley Bus Company; Re-building confidence in using the bus – East Coast Buses; How do I catch a bus? – Stagecoach East Scotland; and Hello London – TfL
ROSCO Award for Innovation in Road Safety
Lytx DriveCam – National Express West Midlands; Accident prevention days campaign – RATP Dev London; Walking and cycling in London – RATP Dev London; and technology + empowered employees = safer buses – Reading Buses
The Award for Sustained Marketing Excellence
Bluestar, shining across the city – Go South Coast; m1 and m2 – Go South Coast, morebus; Journeys taken care of – Go North East; and Express City Connect – Stagecoach East Scotland
Top City Operator
Lothian Buses; National Express West Midlands; Nottingham City Transport; Plymouth Citybus; Stagecoach Manchester; and Stagecoach Merseyside
Top National Bus Driver
Robbie Bartle – Go South Coast, morebus; Garry Williams – National Express West Midlands; Aaron Johnson – Nottingham City Transport; Simon Crumpler – Stagecoach West; Adam Davies – Transdev Blazefield; Joanne Morgan – Stagecoach Manchester; Steven Irvine – Stagecoach Manchester; and James Kearney – Trent Barton
Top Independent Operator
Marshalls of Sutton-on-Trent; Ensignbus; Prentice Coaches; Scarlet Band Bus and Coach; and Uno Bus Northampton
Top London Bus Driver
Jim Hart – Abellio London; Christine Watkins – Arriva London; David Harris – Arriva London; Dean Golding – Go-Ahead London; Natasha Smith – Go-Ahead London; Patrick Lawson – CT Plus; Anthony Banks-Walker – RATP Dev London; and Leighton Shannon – Uno Bus
Top National Bus Depot
Shrewsbury – Arriva Midlands; Heckmondwike – Arriva Yorkshire; Newport, Isle of Wight – Go South Coast, Southern Vectis; Crawley – Metrobus; Grimsby – Stagecoach East Midlands; St Andrews – Stagecoach East Scotland; Sharston – Stagecoach Manchester; and Intack – The Blackburn Bus Company
Top Shire Operator
Go South Coast; Metrobus; Oxford Bus Company; Reading Buses; and Stagecoach East Scotland
Unsung Hero
Janet Cameron – Abellio London; Margaret Skinner – First Scotland East; Steve Ilbury – RATP Dev London; John Millar – Stagecoach East Scotland; Thomas McGovern – Stagecoach East Scotland; and Matt Begg – Stagecoach Midlands
Young Manager of the Year
Rob Hutchings – Arriva London South; Alex Chutter – Go South Coast; Ben Coghlan – Stagecoach Manchester; Elizabeth Richards – Stagecoach West; and Andy Turnbull – Transdev Blazefield
