Bus talk issue 25 december 2013

INSIDE THIS

No.25 • December 2013

12-page Christmas SPECIAL! New Year message from our MD

2014: Let’s make it a great year!

‘

’

Royal approval for skills test: p2

The future is beginning to look more promising

T

HIS year has been all about rising to the challenges presented to us, epitomised by the way the entire company worked together to successfully launch the New Bus for London on Stockwell’s route 11.

Not only did the company have to type train drivers to use the new vehicles; there was also the huge undertaking and employment of passenger assistants which consisted of a series of open days and interviews to help whittle the number down to 57.

There were further route-related highlights throughout the year. Blue Triangle demonstrated great organisational ability to take on 11 new routes and 80 drivers from First Capital East’s Dagenham garage back in June, while further success came in recent tenders, with the company set to take on route 286 from July 2014.

This has been complemented by external success, with Steve Riches winning Top London Bus Driver and New Cross coming second in the Top London

Bus Garage category at the UK Bus Awards.

Collectively, Go-Ahead London also won the Prince Michael International Road Safety Award in the fleet category, which you can read about in this issue, for its work getting drivers through the IAM test.

While there is still some way to go, the future is beginning to look more promising as the economy recovers from the recent slump.

It is important that we continue to look for opportunities to grow the business and make next year even more successful than the one we have just enjoyed. Gaining new work will give everyone job security and help us continue to compete in an increasingly competitive market.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you all for your hard work and dedication this year and wish you and your families a merry Christmas and a happy new year.

John Trayner, Managing Director.

Go-Ahead triumphs at Bus Awards: p3

Merton centenary open day: p6-7

INSIDE: Raising a glass to our long-servers p4-5

Soldier chills out after stint in the heat of war

THE winter chill is a welcome change for Anthony Ibiabuo, who has just returned after spending six months in the scorching heat of Afghanistan attached to 6 Close Support Battalion Royal Electrical Mechanical Engineers.

Camberwell driver Anthony has been a member of 103 Battalion REME TA based

in Crawley for more than 20 years and has previously served with the regular army in Iraq.

Anthony’s unit, based at Camp Bastion in the south of the country, was responsible for equipment support for all theatre-based vehicles making, sure all vehicles were properly maintained and ready to be deployed at a moment’s notice.

He also had to perform other tasks, including guard duty.

Anthony at Camp Bastion.

Anthony said it wasn’t just the hard work and long hours that took it out of him – it was also the conditions.

“It was extremely hot while I was there, with temperatures of 40 plus degrees Celsius for most of the day,” he said.

“Because it’s quite a mountainous region, there was the lack of oxygen from the altitude to contend with as well.”

Having been in the country from April to October, Anthony was also excited to see his wife and two children on his return.

“Six months is a long time to be away from your family in a foreign country,” he continued. “I love the physical aspect of the job and always enjoy it, but it can also be quite hard at times.

“Thankfully, you are given a number of years before you have to serve again, so I am enjoying spending some quality time with my family.”

Driver skills test gets the royal thumbs-up A

VOLUNTARY skills test for drivers that cut accidents by 50 per cent has scooped a prestigious award.

Go-Ahead London picked up a Prince Michael International Road Safety Award in the fleet category during a lavish ceremony at the Savoy Hotel on December 10, having been runner-up last year.

The Institute of Advanced Motorists’ (IAM) test was first offered four years ago at Merton and then at New Cross in a bid to raise driving standards.

Since then, more than 500 drivers have asked to take it.

“It is really a test of practical driving skills, though a few road safety questions may be thrown in,” said Colin Langford, general manager for New Cross, Peckham, Bexleyheath and Belvedere.

“Drivers get IAM course books and mentoring before going out onto the road to put what they have learnt into practice under examination. If they are not ready yet, they will be told by the mentor what they need to work on.

“The programme has proven highly successful, with drivers who took the test 2

BusTalk l December 2013

From left, Lorraine Noseworthy, Richard Harrington, Colin Langford, Graham Oliver, John Plowman and MD John Trayner. having 50 per cent fewer accidents, and even in cases where they have had accidents the cost in terms of damage has been less.”

As well as raising their driving standards, employees reap a range of other benefits, including cheaper car insurance.

Colin accepted the award from Prince Michael

(see picture on page 1) accompanied by his former accident prevention manager at Merton and then at New Cross, Graham Oliver, now operations manager at Northumberland Park.

The pair pioneered the IAM test programme at Go-Ahead London and it is now being rolled out at other depots across the company.

Go-Ahead employees triumph again...

Tender news

from across the capital

G

O-AHEAD Group dominated this Go-Ahead London drivers making up three year’s UK Bus Awards, winning of the eight total nominees. five awards, receiving 11 highly “I was excited just to be shortlisted for the commendeds, one runner-up and one award, so when they read out my name I special commendation. nearly fell off my chair,” said Steve. “Having The awards, which took place on your work recognised is fantastic and I am November 19 at the London Hilton, pay absolutely thrilled to have won the award. tribute to the best and brightest from across “It’s not just an award for me, it’s an award the UK bus industry. for my team at the garage and everyone else BBC news presenter Jane Hill and I’ve had the pleasure of working with.” chairman of the Bus Appeals New Cross was also Board Lord Snape hosted unfortunate to miss out in the lunchtime ceremony, the London Bus Garage of with minister of state for the Year category, where transport Baroness Kramer they narrowly finished as on hand for the keynote runners-up. address.

The garage had to submit Merton driver mentor a self-assessment of its Steve Riches was the achievements and was Go-Ahead London also judged on criteria success story of the including driver quality day, taking home the monitoring data, honours in the Top lost mileage and London Bus Driver engineering standards. category.

Go North East also For winning the award, took home the Eureka!

Steve received a trophy, a Award for Marketing certificate and a cheque for Initiatives and the £1,000.

Award for Marketing This is the second year in a Excellence. row that Go-Ahead London Metrobus Crawley Steve Riches with his award. has triumphed in the category, won the Top National Bus following Stockwell driver Roy Lambe’s victory last Depot award and Go South Coast’s Vernon Gibbs year. Sutton’s Pat Connolly and Peckham’s Andrew received the Special Commendation for Outstanding Samuel were also highly commended, with Service.

Fond farewell to Carole and Carly It was a very sad day for all staff at Head Office on Friday 29 November. It wasn’t only one member of staff leaving but two: Carole Linkson on reception,

It’s retirement for Carole.

who, believe it or not, has now retired, and Carly Moram from the Commercial Department, who is beginning maternity leave.

Carole has worked for the company on two separate occasions, from April 1997 to January 2001 and then returning in 2007. Her lovable character has kept all at Head Office truly entertained and her role as the face of the company will be missed.

Carly joined the company in 2007 to work in the Commercial Department carrying out a very demanding role. Her professionalism when dealing with train companies has been second to none and her

IN OUR regular column, we highlight the recent announcements made by Transport for London. All are retentions unless stated otherwise.

Go-Ahead London n Route 286 (Greenwich to Sidcup), using a PVR of 13 single deck buses. Contract begins on July 12, 2014.

Metroline n Route 7/N7 (Russell Square to East Acton), using new hybrid double deck vehicles (21 PVR). Contract begins on June 21, 2014.

Metroline West n Route 228 (Central Middlesex Hospital to Maida Hill), using existing single deck vehicles (13 PVR). Contract begins on January 18, 2014.

London United n Route 272 (Chiswick to Shepherd’s Bush Green), using existing single deck vehicles (8 PVR). Contract begins on May 24, 2014. n Route 283 (East Acton to Barnes), using existing single deck vehicles (16 PVR).

Contract begins on March 1, 2014. n Route 440 (Gunnersbury to Stonebridge Park), using existing single deck vehicles.

Contract begins on May 24, 2014. n Route E3 (Greenford to Chiswick), won from Metroline West. Contract begins on May 31, 2014, using double deck vehicles (26 PVR).

Abellio West London n Route E1 (Greenford to Ealing Broadway), won from Metroline West London. Contract begins on May 31, 2014, using hybrid double deck vehicles (7 PVR).

Carly is on maternity leave. colleagues eagerly await her return from maternity leave.

Both Carole and Carly will be sorely missed.

TGM n Route E10 (Ealing Broadway to Islip Manor Estate) won from Metroline West. Contract begins on May 31, 2014, using new single deck vehicles (8 PVR).

BusTalk l December 2013

3

Raising a glass long-se L

Long-servers sit down to a well-earned candlelight dinner with their guests.

ONG serving Go-Ahead London employees were honoured at a special ceremony at the Lancaster Hotel on November 22.

The annual awards recognise the hard work and dedication of employees who have served 25, 30, 35 or 40 plus years.

This year’s ceremony was one of the best attended, with the greatest number of employees celebrating 25 years in the history of the event.

Guest of honour was Group chief executive David Brown, while managing director John Trayner was on hand to host the presentation.

Special tribute was also paid to quality manager Roy Sayers

Report charts company’s progress to THE Go-Ahead London 2013 sustainability report is now available. It is the ninth annual report which has been published and it features a message from managing director John Trayner to lead things off.

Mr Trayner attended the Thinking Outside the Bus events, which bring together the managing directors of private bus companies to discuss issues faced by disabled and elderly passengers.

In the wider community, the company has raised money for a number of charities. Among others, St George’s Hospital neo-natal unit received

4

BusTalk l December 2013

£2,100, the Royal Marsden Hospital more than £1,000 and Lewisham Opportunity Pre-School was given £1,500.

Another notable highlight was the growth of patronage and the workforce. The business operates 19.3 per cent of the total bus market in London, with approximately 433 million passenger journeys taking place over the year – an increase of 10.7 per cent.

Almost 600 new employees have joined the business to support this growth, while absence rates have dropped and the number of training

days have risen. Employees have been working hard throughout the year and their dedication has produced results, with 60 buses worth of work retained. A number of routes have also passed their primary assessment periods and many have exceeded TfL’s expectations.

There has been emphasis on safety, with managers and supervisors responsible for investigating incidents receiving training from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents.

Drivers have also been training hard. Some 53,935 hours of CPC training were completed

to our ervers and finance director Paul Reeves, both of whom have many years of service and will retire in the New Year.

After the presentations, the guests enjoyed dancing to music supplied by Red Rhythm.

Directors’ secretary Valerie Clark, who organised the event alongside assistant personnel manager Nita Patel, said: “This was our first time at this hotel, and the event was a great success.

“Everyone really enjoyed themselves and it was wonderful to see all of our long serving employees together in one room,” she said. “To work for the company for more than 25 years is truly exceptional and deserves to be celebrated.”

Group chief executive David Brown presents Tina Wright with her certificate.

owards greater sustainability in the run-up to the September 2013 deadline for issuing driver qualification cards.

The company’s impact on the environment was also highlighted. The Fiat 500 Challenge has encouraged drivers to think about fuel efficiency, while after exhaust treatment has helped lower emissions to Euro 5 standards. Garages have also been using a state-of-theart energy management system to control as much as 84 per cent of energy usage.

Visits from the Royal National Institute of Blind People, as well as employees training on the mobility aid recognition scheme, have helped provide the best service

possible to disabled customers.

The company has also continued to show dedication to its employees, with the driver of the month, employee forum, long service awards and UK Bus Awards all being very successful.

The forum has been viewed more than 83,000 times, with 1,500 posts and more than 260 topics.

Merton won the London bus garage of the year award and Roy Lambe won the top London bus driver award at the 2012 UK Bus Awards.

Commendations were also received in a number of categories at the IRTE Skills Challenge.

BusTalk l December 2013

5

GARAGE opens its doors TO celebrate 100

T

he celebrations of Merton Bus Garage becoming 100 years old took place on Sunday 17 November.

There was a very hard-working team of staff who made the day very special for all of our very enthusiastic visitors who varied from babies in pushchairs to those in their 80s and 90s.

The event included a tour of Merton Bus Garage by members of management, with the engineers giving a very informative talk about the buses and even giving our visitors the experience to see the underside of a single decker bus.

There was also a ten-vehicle static bus display in historical order starting with a bus built in 1926 up to a New Bus for London commonly known as the Boris Bus. Extremely popular were the trips to Wimbledon Village and back which was part-organised by commercial manager Colin Farrant.

There were also nine trade stalls and possibly one of the biggest attractions of all – a trip through the bus wash!

Bus Driver of the Year 2012 Stephen Appiah was the friendly face greeting all who seized the opportunity to take this rare trip.

“The excitement on the children’s faces was a picture; even the adults couldn’t wipe the smile off their face at the end of the short journey,” said Stephen.

Support The day was all about raising money for Merton Mencap, a local charity providing support and services for children, young people and adults with a learning disability and their family carers in the London Borough of Merton.

The event was a great success and we are proud to say that a fantastic £1,648.40 was raised in donations with a further £351.60 added on behalf of Go-Ahead London by managing director John Trayner, making a grand total of £2,000 which will all go to Merton Mencap.

At 50p a go for a trip through the bus wash, donations made for each garage tour and rides to Wimbledon Village in vintage Class V buses, we are pleased with the generosity made by all on the day. Equally for the hard work and effort put in by all staff who helped organise the event and for those who took the time out of their Sunday to help out with marshalling and generally looking out for the health and safety of our many visitors.

Much praise goes out to the Merton management team who made a huge effort to make the Centenary event the success that it was. Everybody gave their all and what’s best is that it was all done with a smile.

Operating manager Mark Cambridge, who carried out many garage tours, was pleased with how the day went and was proud of the number of positive comments he received.

6

BusTalk l December 2013

Families c bus fun a

“I got so many thank-yous at the end of the tours. The visitors, many of whom attended the Willesden and Holloway events, gave lots of praise about how the Merton Centenary event was extremely well organised and put together”, said Mark.

Co-organisers of the event Sheldon Malcolm and Greg French were also pleased with the event and the generosity of the visitors.

Sheldon said: “The day was a resounding success, with plenty of money raised for a very worthy charity. The planning for this event started in April and I am delighted that the efforts put in by everyone involved paid off on the day.”

Greg, who spent a lot of time organising and promoting the event over the last few months, was frantically running around from the very

0 YEARS providing local public transport

‘

Visitors give their verdict on the day Thank you very much. I had a very enjoyable and interesting time at your open day in Merton. I hope it was a success and you will do it again.

Cheers!”

Ros and Mark Dunham

Just thought I should say thank you to all the staff who made the open day so enjoyable, especially as the garage is an awkward shape to hold such an event and also it still had to continue working.

As an enthusiast and shareholder, I think everyone involved created an excellent impression of a well run garage and business. Again, thank you.

G. J. Ledger

Thanks to all concerned for the centenary open day.

C. J. Cuss

catch the t Merton early morning making sure that everything was in place.

“I can’t thank the Merton management team enough for all of their hard work prior to the event and on the day itself. I was extremely pleased with how it went and with the amount of people that turned up on the day. It was great to see my sons (pictured) having so much fun there too,” said Greg.

“I’d also like to thank the bus owners and the stallholders for being so prompt, which allowed us to start the Open Day at the time advertised.

Everything went so smoothly – I even surprised myself!”

Both Sheldon and Greg are to be congratulated for all their efforts in putting this 100 year celebration of Merton bus garage together.

Just thought I would drop you a line to say how well organised the open day was yesterday. The staff were all very helpful, the garage was clean and the day was, I’m sure, enjoyed by everyone who went. We were most impressed by the visiting vehicles you had gathered together. We found it well worth the 200 mile plus round trip, and hope you raised lots of money for Mencap.

Janet and Edwin, Devizes, Wiltshire.

A quick note to thank you for the centenary celebrations. It was interesting to see what goes on in my local garage.

Thanks too for the bus wash trip and the RT ride to Wimbledon Village. I know the effort it takes to organise these sorts of days, so I wanted you to know that I appreciated it and had a very enjoyable afternoon. Here’s to the next 100 years.

Pat Dennis Congratulations on the Merton Garage Centenary Open Day. I found the garage tour most interesting and informative in showing how you arrived at the daily output.

Naturally, I have experienced the benefits of the garage’s (and company’s) hard work, both as a passenger and in photographing your buses. Thank you again.

J Manvers

BusTalk l December 2013

7

Camberwell leaves nothing to chance in trophy bid

Risk-buster champions

John Hanby receives his innovation award.

The runners-up trophy went to Bexleyheath.

Trophy winners Camberwell proved their worth in a range of challenges.

C

AMBERWELL’S risk competition team has been celebrating after fighting off stiff opposition to take home this year’s trophy.

Each garage entered a team comprising of six members, with one person from each taking on the role of team leader.

Metrobus Croydon and Orpington, and a joint driver and engineering training team also entered the competition.

The teams were required to undertake

While Belvedere was awarded third place.

Bernie Rajewski, Marlon Lewis, Dwayne Peart, Craig Simmonds-Jones and Edric MandersRobinson.

Bexleyheath followed closely behind in second place, with Belvedere finishing third.

All three teams were presented with their trophies at a special dinner at the Vincent Rooms on November 13.

A special trophy for innovation, sponsored by PHSC, the Group’s safety advisors, was also awarded to Sutton, Putney and Waterside Way engineering manager John Hanby.

“There were a lot of very good entries – some of the posters and publications looked like they had a lot of commendations been professionally done,” said for them, we have heard risk and safety manager Andrew from many people that the Smith. information they have been “Camberwell performed to an giving out is of a very high extremely high standard throughout standard. the competition and really deserved “The route is very popular the top spot. in the garage and I think “It was also great to see John everyone is impressed pick up the new innovation award. with the relationship the He has worked tirelessly for many passenger assistants and years to introduce new standards drivers have forged in such a and procedures at the garages he short time.” has managed.”

risk assessments on slips and trips, vehicle movement and diesel deliveries. They also had to produce a route risk assessment.

Winners Camberwell spoke to employees to ascertain where unreported slips and trips had taken place, taking action to prevent further accidents from occurring. They also mapped out hazards on route 185, from Lewisham to Victoria Station and used hazard alert signs to highlight particular risk areas to drivers.

The team consisted of leader Ryan Gayle,

Route 11 crews are a hit with customers STOCKWELL’S route 11 continues to go from strength to strength following the launch of the New Bus for London in September.

Drivers and passenger assistants have settled into their roles and have been working hard to ensure that the 23,000 customers who travel between Liverpool Street and Fulham Broadway

8

BusTalk l December 2013

every day have a memorable journey.

The iconic route was also featured heavily in Buses Magazine, the largest publication of its kind for the industry.

“The work of our passenger assistants has been going down very well with customers,” said operating manager Hannah Self.

“Not only have there been

Squads score for charity T

HREE five-a-side teams travelled abroad to take part in an annual football tournament against rival companies from Rome and Baden-Baden.

The Merton Lions, Peckham Panthers and Merton Tigers all took a trip to Rome, with drivers, controllers and many other Go-Ahead London employees getting involved.

Unfortunately, none of the teams claimed victory. The Merton Lions finished the highest

out of the three, getting knocked out on penalties in the semi-finals.

The tournament was not just about the football either, with charity fundraising also taking place over the weekend. More than £1,500 was raised, which was donated to a local children’s charity.

The three teams are already thinking ahead to next year’s competition, which will be taking place in London!

announcements” and “driving very smoothly”.

NORTHUMBERLAND PARK n PARTIALLY-sighted Miss Faint thanked Kevin Roberts for helping her when she was waiting for the bus with her guide dog.

CAMBERWELL n DANIEL Akpoveta received a commendation STOCKWELL n YVONNE Keogh praised by Ms Collins for from Mr Warsop for helping to return a being “polite and patient” when helping her customer’s purse (check out October’s Bus pay her fare with a debit card.

Talk for the full story). n A GRATEFUL Ms Denton commended Marc n A THANKFUL Mr Garey described John Halliday for his “superb service”.

Edmead’s driving as “safe and secure”. n MR BOYLE wrote in to thank Cameron n AZEEZ Dende-Raji’s smooth driving was praised by Mr Mckeever, who said he provided McDowall for “his manners and general professionalism” while conducting. a “friendly and professional” service. n PASSENGER assistant Jade Briant was n AN IMPRESSED Mrs Foster thanked described as “polite, helpful and pleasant” by Mekonen Haile for his “very professional Mrs Smith. conduct” when dealing with a rude customer. n ROY Lambe put a smile on the face of MERTON n A CUSTOMER described Stephen Mrs Rose, who described him as “extremely Osbourne as “amazingly kind and helpful” for cheerful and helpful”. helping her board his bus with a buggy. n WAITING for Miss Collins when she was NEW CROSS running for the bus has earned Michael Powell n A COMPLIMENT has been sent to a commendation.

Thiyakaras Sugantharansan and Francis n THE high quality service provided by Azeez Murray for their “polite and efficient” manner Al-Ani was praised by Ms Isaac, who said “he during a training session. deserves a pat on the back”. n THE “warmth and patience” of Giorgio n ADVICE given by passenger assistant Bertoni was praised by Mrs Blackburn.

Cameron MacDowall has earned him a n MR PARFITT sent a commendation to commendation from Mr Read, who called him Richard Taylor for “his patience” when dealing “a real credit” to the company. with an aggressive customer. n EYOBE Desta has received a n SAMANTHA Feuillade has been commendation from Mr Ibitoye for helping to commended for “making good use of iBus return his phone that was left on the bus.

COMMENDATIONS

“The trip was fantastic, even if none of our teams managed to take home the trophy,” said Merton driver and trip organiser Scott Horney.

“Usually, the home teams are the ones who do best, so we are hoping one of the GoAhead London teams will win next year!

“We will also need plenty of support, and will be doing fundraising for First Touch and the A-T Society too, so we hope plenty of our colleagues will be coming down to lend their support.”

n A CUSTOMER thanked Clive Wilson for his “excellent driving skills”. n MR ASHDOWN wrote in to praise Nicola Jordon, who he said was “such a pleasant person”. n GOING beyond the call of duty to inform customers of upcoming traffic due to delays earned Valerie Lucas a big thank you from Miss Blackshaw. n THE calm way that passenger assistant Ben Brown dealt with diversions won him a commendation from Mrs Vella, who described him as “polite, chatty and informative”.

SUTTON n STAYING alert when a customer showed signs of a heart attack earned Stephen Powell a commendation from Ms Grove, who says he “restored some of her faith in people”. n A THANKFUL Ms Collins described Ian Stephens as “very alert” for quickly helping her when she needed to use the ramp. n MR EDE commended Isaac Oyemade for his excellent driving and friendly manner. n GIVING Mr Guerrini time to cross the road and board his bus has earned Frank Oliver a commendation. n THE way Deborah Murray coped with a racist customer impressed Mrs Chaplin, who said she “dealt very well with a tricky situation”. n JENNIE Gillespie received a commendation from Mr Ede for having a “manner that makes the journey feel good”.

BusTalk l December 2013

9

Tickled pink by your specs!

In our Face 2 Face column, we chat to Rob Gibbs, a driver at Sutton who has worked for the company for 20 years. We asked Rob a series of light-hearted questions...

Q: If you could have any superpower, what would it be?

A: I’d like to be able to see into the future so that I can predict the lottery results!

Q: What job did you most want to do when you were younger?

A: I wanted to be a steam train driver.

Q: If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would you choose?

A: Fish and chips.

Q: Where would you most like to live if you didn’t live in England?

A: Gran Canaria.

Q: What was your first car?

A: A Triumph Herald convertible.

Q: How do you most like to spend your free time?

A: Going for a walk with my wife.

Q: If you could have dinner with anyone, living or dead, who would it be?

A: Steve McQueen.

Q: What’s the best present you’ve ever been given?

A: A train set.

10

BusTalk l December 2013

S

TAFF at New Cross ‘wore it pink’ in aid of a worthy cause on November 1.

Colleagues paid £2 each to wear an item of pink clothing to show their support for Breast Cancer Care.

The day raised £367, which was added to funds from other ventures, enabling the garage to hand over more than £600 to the charity.

There was also a raffle on the day, and driver Carmen Bell raised £72 by selling her homemade cupcakes.

“I would really like to thank everyone who supported us on the day for such a worthy cause,” said garage administrator Jeanette Morton.

“I would particularly like to thank drivers Nick Burnett and Errol Gordon for persuading people to part with their money and Samantha Feuillade for her skills in selling raffle tickets.”

Employees at head office also wore pink and raised another £140.

Managers on the move...

THERE have been a number of employee movements across Go-Ahead London over the last few months.

John Canning has taken on the new role of cover operating manager, working across the whole of the company.

He was previously general manager at First Group’s Dagenham garage and started with GoAhead London in November.

So far, John has worked at Camberwell for a number of weeks, as well as at Merton and currently Docklands.

“Moving from garage to garage has really helped me get a feel for the company quickly,” said John.

“Everyone I’ve met so far has been very welcoming and I am looking forward to visiting

even more garages in the future!”

There are also a number of new workshop managers in place.

Rob Fairclough has joined the company from First Group to work at Croydon; Karl Webber has taken on the role at Camberwell and Gary Thompson will be doing the same at Peckham and Mandela Way. Finally, the company has said a fond farewell to technical support manager Frank Darch.

Frank took on a similar role within the Go-Ahead Group in December.

He will not be disappearing entirely, however, and will still play a key role in mentoring his successor, as well as offering advice and assistance to GoAhead London.

Jermaine’s in running for Rio

AS ONE of the country’s top athletes, Jermaine Mays is just as used to travelling on foot as he is by bus.

New Cross driver Jermaine is a 3,000-metre steeplechaser, who has been running up to 85 miles a week to prepare for next year’s Commonwealth Games.

Jermaine is no stranger to international competition either, having competed in the Europa Cup in Poland, the European

Championships in Gothenburg and the World University Games in Bangkok. He is also a twotime British champion and has even been asked to join England Athletics at a special training camp in Colorado next year.

“Hopefully, it will help me sharpen up ahead of the Commonwealth Games, which takes place in Glasgow next July.”

Jermaine, whose personal best in the 3,000 metres stands at

8mins 30secs, has big aspirations.

“I came fourth at the Olympic trials in the 1500 metres, so would like to try for the Rio Olympics in the steeplechase,” he said. “There’s also the World Championships in 2015, and the British record for the 2,000metre steeplechase that I would like to Olympics hopeful Jermaine. try and beat.”

Brush up your skills on new CPC course

D

RIVERS will have the opportunity to brush up on a number of topics when new CPC training, named DRIVER/OP (Drivers Regularly Inspecting Vehicles, Essential Repairs and Operating Performance), begins in January.

used to measure performance and how drivers can make an impact on the figures.

A DVD produced by TfL, titled All On Board, will also be shown. The DVD covers issues disabled customers may encounter when using buses.

Drivers will then be encouraged to discuss themes covered during the film.

The final topic explored during DRIVER/OP will be pre-service checks. This topic will also be covered in conjunction with a DVD, which is currently being produced by Go-Ahead London.

Similar to the SQUID course, a member of management will also be in attendance to field any questions attendees may have. This year, however, it will be a senior member of the engineering team present to ensure all queries about pre-service checks and vehicle repairs are answered.

“During the SQUID forum, a number of questions came up to do with the engineering side of things,” said training and development manager Eric Dale.

“For that reason, we have decided to cover pre-service checks and vehicle and competence. repairs to give drivers the opportunity “I was told by the examiner that I had to to pose questions to a senior engineer. commentate on what I was doing in order “We are always trying to improve the to receive the highest mark,” Chris said. experience disabled customers have “However, when it came to toting up my score, using our services, so we thought that he said that there was nothing he could really would also be a good topic to refresh fault me on and, as such, still had to award me drivers on. Finally, we want drivers to a first. I knew I must have done reasonably better understand how TfL measures well, but not that I had done quite that well.” a bus company’s performance.

Chris was quick to give some credit for his “To do that, we will go through the success to garage driving instructor Dave various league tables and explain how Lewis. “I have to thank Dave for the excellent drivers can do their bit to improve Gotraining he gave me,” he added.

Ahead London’s standing.”

The course will last seven hours and contribute to the 35 hours of periodic training that all drivers are required to complete every five years. One of the major themes of the course is operating performance, where drivers will be taught about how TfL league tables are

Chris, right, proudly displays his IAM certificate with garage driving instructor Dave Lewis.

Examiner really rates Chris!

THERE are few better things in life than passing a test with flying colours – something Chris Carr knows all about!

Belvedere supervisor and leading driver Chris passed the Institute of Advanced Motorists’ test with a score so high he received the coveted F1RST rating. The test is based on the police system of vehicle control and aims to improe the safety of drivers, their passengers and other road users.

Examiners look for a safe, smooth, systematic, progressive and balanced drive, with particular attention paid to confidence

BusTalk l December 2013

11

Kids get on board to learn about public transport CHILDREN from St Mary’s CofE Primary School had the opportunity to learn more about public transport when they visited Putney in November.

For the third year running, employees took the time to teach the six-yearolds about what goes in to running a successful bus garage.

Driver Duncan Cummings drove the

children round the garage in a bus, making sure to pass through the bus wash on the way round, and they also learned about using the bus.

Operating manager Alan McCormack said it was a pleasure to host another school party and hoped to continue the tradition in coming years.

“It’s the third year in a row we have seen

a class of children wearing mini high-vis jackets tour our garage,” he said.

“The school was very appreciative of what we did and the children certainly enjoyed themselves as well. Days like that really show the bus industry in a positive light and I hope we can continue to host educational visits for many years to come.”

Health day a big success

An ‘excellent’ idea, say staff EMPLOYEES from across Stockwell were quick to take advantage of the health advice on offer during the day.

“We all had our blood pressure taken, which thankfully was fine,” said mileage clerk Kerry Wentworth.

“There was even a little bit of friendly competition going on among everyone to see whose was the lowest!

“Everyone was very keen to check out what was on offer and learn a bit more about how to improve our health.

‘Brilliant’

A

Stockwell employees learn how to live more healthily.

TRIO of health organisations visited six garages in November to hand out healthy living information to employees.

Bowel Cancer UK, the Stroke Association and Diabetes UK all took part and visited Peckham, Sutton, Stockwell, New Cross, Northumberland Park and Rainham garages.

At Stockwell lots of people, from drivers to controllers and managers, took time to learn how to minimise the risk of developing health conditions. Leaflets were handed out and there was even the chance for attendees to have their blood pressure measured.

Charity representatives also gave out other information, including spotting symptoms and how to reduce risk.

“I was really pleased to see so many people taking an interest in what was on offer,” said operating manager Hannah Self.

“Educating people about their health is really important and could help people avoid contracting serious conditions in the long term.

“Not only that, the people that did attend can then take information home to share with friends and family as well.”

Obituary

Garage mourns passing of popular colleague “POPULAR and professional” was how colleagues described roadside inspector Dervish Salih, who passed away on October 21 after a long illness, aged 54.

12

BusTalk l December 2013

Dervish joined Northumberland Park as a driver in 1999 when it was part of FirstGroup. He became an inspector seven years ago and transferred to Go-Ahead when they

acquired the garage in 2012.

“Dervish was very well liked and respected by all the drivers and management as well,” said colleague Ali Malik.

“It’s a brilliant thing for the company to be offering. I would definitely attend any future health days.

“I found out that my blood pressure was slightly higher than normal, which I never would have known about otherwise,” said driver Chi Man. “Luckily, it’s nothing serious, but it’s good to know that it’s something I should keep an eye on in the future. “I think the health days are an excellent idea.

“A lot of my colleagues are very busy and may not have time to go to the doctors, so it’s great to have the opportunity to get advice at the garage.”

Got a story?

If so, why not get in touch?

We at Bus Talk are always on the lookout for interesting articles about our readers, so give us a call on 01932 243400 or email us at go-ahead@ ruxley.co.uk

Published by Go-Ahead London. Produced by Ruxley Communications, Walton-on-Thames. Printed by Evolve Print Solutions, Rickmansworth.