First Glasgow scoops top prize at Scottish Transport Awards

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20 Jun 2019

• Bus operator scoops best bus service at national awards
• Industry recognition of improvements to Service 75
• First Glasgow were shortlisted in five other categories
• Four colleagues from First Midland and First Aberdeen were highly commended in Frontline Employee of the year category for heroic acts

First Glasgow scooped the top prize for Best Bus Service for their highly popular 75 service at a night of glitz and glamour at the prestigious 17th annual Scottish Transport Awards held at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Glasgow.

The evening was hosted by BBC presenter and political analyst James Naughtie, while the Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity, Michael Mathieson MSP gave the keynote speech.

First Glasgow scooped the prestigious best Scottish bus service award for the Service 75 having invested heavily in revamping the service back in October 2018 with the rollout of brand-new ADL Enviro 400 low emission Euro VI diesel buses. The new buses for this service were the first batch of over £30 million worth of new bus investment for the people of Glasgow and provided customers, initially on the 75 route from Castlemilk to Milton with a total of 75 new low-emissions vehicles.

The new Double Decker MMC 400 buses offer an improved customer experience with USB charging points, comfortable coach style e-leather seating and free WIFI, but they also offer peace of mind because they are fitted with the latest Euro VI diesel particle filter and start/stop engine technology to offer an even more eco-friendlier journey.

As a result of these improvements, First Glasgow noted a passenger increase year on year from 2018 bucking the national trend of passenger decline. The improvements to the 75 service have now been recognised by the judging panel at the Scottish Transport Awards as the Country’s best bus service.

Andrew Jarvis, Managing Director for First Bus in Scotland, said:

“I am thrilled for all the shortlisted entries getting the rightful recognition for their stellar efforts throughout the course of the past 12 months. In particular, I would like to further praise all four of our drivers who were highly commended for their amazing and selfless acts that went way beyond the call of the job. They are a credit to First Bus and the transport industry in general.

“Huge congratulations go to the whole First Glasgow team on their victory in the Best Bus Service category for the Service 75. It is great to get the recognition from our peers in the transport industry for the hard work and effort that has gone into launching these new vehicles and the constant strive to improve the customer experience.”

First Bus had no less than ten shortlisted nominations in total on the night with four of those coming from First Scotland East and First Aberdeen and the below summary details for all the First Bus (Scotland) entries:

First Aberdeen – Hero Driver Claire Munro – Frontline Employee of the Year – Highly Commended
First Aberdeen – Hero Driver Paul McLeod - Frontline Employee of the Year – Highly Commended
First Midland – Hero Driver Ian Graham – Frontline Employee of the Year – Highly Commended
First Midland – Hero Driver Paul Cunningham – Frontline Employee of Year – Highly Commended
First Glasgow – Service 75 – Best Bus Service - WINNER
First Glasgow – Transport Operator of the Year – Shortlisted
First Glasgow (A Bus in a Box) – Excellence in Marketing and travel information – Shortlisted
First Glasgow / NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde - Transport Partnership of the Year – Shortlisted
First Glasgow – Mirrorless Bus - Most Innovative Transport Project - Shortlisted
First Glasgow – Contribution to Sustainable Transport – Shortlisted

ENDS

First Glasgow scoops top prize at Scottish Transport Awards

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