Four new female bus drivers will take to the Isle of Wight roads this month - part of Southern Vectis’ drive to recruit more women into the public transport industry.
The operator held a special ‘try it’ event in September last year, in a bid to encourage more of the island’s women to consider joining its team.
Participants got the opportunity to experience what it was like to drive a bus - and the initiative was a huge success.
“Across the UK, women are still vastly under-represented in this field - and we wanted to show them what it could be like to work within the bus industry as a driver,” said Southern Vectis head of communications, Nikki Honer.
“We were hugely encouraged by the number of women who came along. I’m delighted to say that four of them have now been recruited, passed their Passenger Carrying Vehicle (PCV) test, completed their training - and are now ready to transport our customers across the island.
“It’s a great way to start 2025, and I’d like to congratulate them all on their successful completion of the driver training course.
“We often hear from women that they don’t feel they could drive a bus.
"Our latest team members - and those who have joined before them - have proved this is simply not the case. If they can drive a car, we can teach them the rest. With the right training, it’s far easier than many might think.
“Our friendly and experienced female driver training instructors were on-hand throughout - and they have done a wonderful job of readying our latest in-take for their new driving roles.”
New Southern Vectis driver, Amy Harrison, added:
“I can’t thank the training team enough. There have been some challenges but, with their help I got through fine. I’ve enjoyed every second of it and am looking forward to meeting customers across the island.”
Fellow new driver, Libby Green, said:
“It’s been a really enjoyable challenge and I’ve met some great people. It’s different everyday and that’s the joy of it.”
For more information about Southern Vectis, please visit islandbuses.info
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