About

UK Bus Driver of the Year is the bus industry’s leading road safety and skills competition

“we challenge the most skilled bus drivers from across the United Kingdom at our competition's annual National Final”

The UK Bus Driver of the Year event has its origins in a Coventry Corporation road safety competition which was first held in 1967 and organised by our present Honorary President, Mr John Boxall MBE. In the following years more bus operators joined the event and by the mid-1970s it had become a truly national competition. Blackpool has been the venue for the National Final since 1982.

Each January bus operating companies are invited to register for the competition. Those that have entered before and those subscribed to our mailing list will receive a pack by email with information about the event, including dates and entry fees.

At this stage, operators only need to decide the number of drivers that they wish to enter into the National Final and pay their entry fee via our website. Due to the high demand for places at the National Final companies are advised to book as early as possible before the end of April.

Driver Eligibility

Drivers of local bus and inter-urban express services such as National Express and Green Line are eligible to compete if they:

have been employed as a bus driver (not necessarily by the same company) since 1st September of the year preceding the competition, and during the same period
have not been involved in an accident for which they are in any way at fault
have not been absent from work for any period exceeding 14 weeks continuous duration
have no live endorsements on their licences

Bus Driver of the Year seeks to reward full-time drivers who exercise their skills throughout the year. It is therefore also a requirement that a driver works the equivalent of at least three full shifts per week (i.e. 24 hours) in order to qualify for entry into the competition.

All drivers entered into the competition must be nominated by their employer. We do not allow drivers to enter themselves into the competition.

The selection of the best drivers in a company should comprise, as a minimum, an in-service assessment of driving and customer care skills and a written test on the Highway Code and legal responsibilities. Some companies choose to take into account such factors as personal and in-service timekeeping, complaints and compliments, adherence to company regulations and smartness of dress.

Some operators organise a more comprehensive selection process along the lines of the Bus Driver of the Year final, incorporating both on- and off-road driving tests, and such companies are welcome to contact our Operations Director for guidance on setting the competition up. We do not exclude would-be entrants whose employers are unable to organise the full recommended seeding process.

We have the support of all the major bus groups and as the industry’s leading road safety and skills competition, the National Final is the ideal opportunity for operators to present their best drivers to the public and to afford them the chance to win valuable prizes and claim the accolade of 'UK Bus Driver of the Year'.

A set of final instructions is compiled once companies have selected their best drivers and supplied competitor names to us. Approximately two weeks before the National Final local organisers will be emailed a copy of the final instructions for them to share with their competitors. These instructions will include times and locations for required activities on the day and general information about the weekend.