13 October 2022

The UK Bus Awards, the prestigious national award scheme, has announced its 2022 shortlist after another bumper year for entries.

After a pause over the last two years due to the Covid-19 pandemic, people, projects and bus operators will once again be competing for the top awards across 22 categories at an in-person presentation ceremony on 15 November at Troxy, London.

The judging process has included – once again – mystery travelling of the driver and operator finalists and face-to-face interviews with all of those shortlisted for the people awards.

Alan Millar, Chair of the UK Bus Awards, said: “This shortlist of finalists represents the skills and talents of the industry. They range from small, family-owned businesses through to the very large multinational transport groups, including several entering for the first time. It’s pleasing to see our first in-person awards ceremony since 2019 will once again recognise and reward excellence across the board to find the very best in the business.

“There will be some tough competition too. We have been challenged by the sheer strength and creativity of the entries, especially within the people categories, all of which our independent team of judges reported as outstanding.

“We can’t wait to bring the industry together once again to celebrate its successes, achievements, innovations, dedication and sheer brilliance.”

Tickets for the ceremony are available now at www.ukbusawards.org.uk.

The full shortlist can be found here.

Notes to Editors:

• The winner of the Services to the Industry and the prestigious UK Bus Operator of the Year sponsored by Gallagher and QBE Insurance will be announced at the awards ceremony at Troxy, London on 15^th November, 2022.
• The winner of the UK Bus Operator of the Year will be selected from the highest-scoring contestants of the Top City Operator, Top Independent Operator and Top Shire Operator Awards.The UK Bus Awards has been recognising, rewarding and inspiring since 1996.
• The Award for Services to the Bus Industry recognises a significant and sustained contribution to the success of the industry by an individual who has consistently gone beyond the call of normal duty to improve and promote the bus industry for its users or the wider community over a period of years. This award is made by the UKBA Management Committee which will assess the nominee’s length of service and record of achievement.
• The awards are independently judged by expert panels, ensuring integrity and transparency.
• The UK Bus Awards is committed to embracing and promoting innovation, inclusion and diversity within the bus industry.

For further information, please contact Andrew Garnett using the contact form here.

15 August 2022

Judging is underway in this year’s UK Bus Awards across all categories in the 2022 competition.

Panels of industry experts are examining the entries and making their judgement, and for some categories, selected entrants are invited for interview as part of the judging process. Some other categories are being subject to our band of msytery travellers who will be ensuring that what is being delivered on the ground matches what the entry claimed. 

While all this is going on, the list of Finalists will be announced online in the first half of Ocober, but the winners won’t be known until the presentation ceremony at Troxy in London on Tuesday 15th November. 

1 August 2022

Entries for this year’s competion have now closed for all except the two London categories, which close on 26th August.

We’re processing all the entries and will be contacting all the entrants to aknowledge receipt of the entry and asking for any further information if needed.

Following feedback from entrants and judges in the 2021 competition, we’re running the easy entry system again this year for all 23 categories. There is a mixture of new and returning categoires that cover the full range of skills required to plan, promote and deliver high quality bus services to customers.

4 June 2022

UK Bus Awards organisers have paid tribute to the late Barry Moore, who served as the organisation’s first chair. Barry, retired MD of Ipswich Buses, died suddenly at home on 17 May.

He worked with the UK Bus Awards (originally the Bus Industry Awards) for 18 years, serving as its first chair from its foundation in 1995 until 2004, and then as Minutes Secretary to the Management Committee for a further nine years, stepping down in December 2013.

Born in Bournemouth and originally trained as a research chemist, Barry joined the bus industry in the traffic office at Leicester City Transport, before being selected for the Municipal Passenger Transport Association Training Scheme, ultimately returning to Leicester and holding a variety of posts, before being promoted to Traffic Superintendent.

In 1974, he moved to Plymouth as Deputy General Manager, before moving to Ipswich as General Manager five years later. At deregulation in 1986 he was appointed as managing director of the new arm’s length company. He took early retirement in 1995, later becoming a Suffolk County Councillor for four years, also doing research work for a local MP and acting as a campaigner for pressure group Transport 2000 (now Campaign for Better Transport).

Chris Cheek, UK Bus Awards director, who worked with Barry throughout his time with the awards, commented, “Barry was highly instrumental in the early success of the awards, and was a great personal support to me and other members of the team. After such a distinguished career, he was held in high regard throughout the industry, and his calm demeanour, gentle sense of humour and deep knowledge of the business were invaluable.”

“He will be sorely missed,” he added, “and we all send our deepest condolences to his wife Muriel and his family.”

ENDS

Barry Moore on duty as Bus Industry Awards chair in Golden Jubilee year, 2002.

3 June 2022

Details of the 2022 UK Bus Awards have been announced, with plans for the contest to get under way this month. Entries will once more be invited to compete for 23 awards covering the full range of skills required to plan, promote and deliver high quality bus services to customers.

The award categories are a mixture of the familiar and the new. The categories continue to emphasise the importance of the industry’s people, with six awards available from drivers to senior managers. Top Express Operation, previous competed for under the UK Coach Awards banner, has been added to the operating award.

In the technical and professional categories, modifications have been made, recognising the changes and developments that have taken place since the competition was last held in this form in 2019. Two categories are designed to recognise technological change and innovation – one that supports the environment and one that supports improvement in the customer experience. A new Marketing award replaces the previous two in this area, whilst there’s a welcome return for an old favourite, Buses for Pleasure– reflecting the new importance of leisure travel to the industry. The importance of partnerships to deliver bus service improvements is emphasised with the new Partnering for Delivery award, presented in memory of the late Peter Huntley who was a passionate advocate of such joint working throughout his career. Another favourite completes the set –Bus and the Community, again emphasising partnerships but this time mostly with the voluntary sector.

Alan Millar, UK Bus Awards Chairman, said; “We are delighted to be entering the 26th competition, featuring our first in-person event since before the Covid pandemic. We’re really looking forward to receiving and assessing the entries for this year’s competition – and to welcoming everybody to Troxy on 15 November.”

He continued, “The events of the last three years have been really tough, but the industry has responded superbly, carrying essential workers during lockdown, adapting to rapidly changing circumstances and working in partnership with local authorities and others to keep our networks running. We’re really keen to be recognising and rewarding those efforts through the awards and inspiring others to follow the winners’ examples.”

Details of how to enter or nominate will be available shortly via the UK Bus Awards website (www.ukbusawards.org.uk), where details of categories and criteria will also be found. The closing date is Friday 29 July. Judging will take place in August and September, with the shortlist being announced online during October. The Presentation Ceremony will take place at Troxy in East London on Tuesday 15 November 2022.

ENDS

NOTES FOR EDITORS

UK Bus Awards was founded in 1996 and is run by an independent, special purpose, not-for-dividend company.

The UK Bus Awards scheme is designed to recognise and reward excellence and good practice in a wide range of disciplines associated with the operation, design and promotion of bus services. Its mission is also to use the inspiration of the winning projects to inspire others to emulate the winning schemes, projects or organisations.

The UK Bus Awards 2022 Categories and Awards

Awards for Industry People

• Engineer of the Year
• Leader of the Year
• Services to the Bus Industry
• Top National Bus Driver: The Chris Moyes Memorial Award
• Unsung Heroes
• Young Manager of the Year
• London Awards
• London Bus Garage of the Year
• Luke Rees-Pulley Award for Top London Bus Driver

Operating Awards

• Top City Operator
• Top Express Coach Operation
• Top Independent Operator
• Top Shire Operator
• Top National Bus Depot
• UK Bus Operator of the Year

Technical & Professional Awards

• Bus and the Community
• Buses for Pleasure
• Culture Change
• Marketing
• “None of the Above”
• Partnering for Delivery: The Peter Huntley Memorial Award
• ROSCO Award for Contribution to Safe Driving
• Supporting the Customer Experience
• Supporting the Environment