Road Safety Week – Putting safety First
This week is Road Safety Week, the biggest safety campaign of the year for charity Brake, who are raising awareness of the devastating impact of road crashes, as well as celebrating the work of the incredible people who support families after a road death or serious injury.
At FirstGroup, safety is one of our five values, demonstrating our commitment to the safety of our customers, our employees and all third parties that interact with our businesses. Given the nature of public transport and the constant movement on our networks, we take very seriously our duty of care to ensure that our customers can safely use our services and that our employees can safely perform their duties.
‘Ambler Gambler’
To mark Road Safety Week, First Bus have launched a new campaign, Ambler Gambler, to educate their drivers about the importance of vigilance and safety around pedestrian crossings. The campaign reminds drivers to watch out for ‘stale greens’, ie, when a traffic light has been green for a while, that it is soon likely to change to amber. The campaign reiterates to drivers, that Amber at a pedestrian crossing really means stop. Therefore, it is important not to be an Ambler Gambler, and to be ready in advance to cover your breaks, in anticipation of a stale green changing.
This is just one example of one of the many campaigns and initiatives First Bus have designed and delivered as part of their unwavering commitment to safety.
Bespoke management training
First Bus were the first operator to create a tailored training programme for its managers, supervisors and safety reps that encompasses all the key subjects in the conventional Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) managing safely course. It also encompasses all key road safety subjects as well as First Bus processes and procedures. Since the accreditation’s launch in January 2024, over 500 colleagues have completed the course, receiving a certificate from IOSH upon completion, plus a First Bus Health & Safety handbook with information to help sustain their learnings until the refresher course.
The Thru Care programme
The Thru Care programme is a bespoke scheme designed to support new drivers through their first year with First Bus, the time which is typically the most challenging. Special rosters are designed to ensure new drivers are not overwhelmed, and by phasing their learning and tracking their performance through the driving standards database, support can be provided until they gain the relevant experience.
Pull Away When Safe (PAWS)
Pull Away When Safe or PAWS, was originally conceived by First Bus in Wigan back in 2004 as a safety campaign to help drivers reduce passenger injuries. Over time it has become a long-standing, easy to remember risk assessment for drivers, that aims to allow vulnerable customers a little bit more time to get into a safe position on the bus before the driver pulls away. PAWS is now firmly embedded into First Bus driver training and policy, with any incident investigation process including compliance with this policy.