The French President, Emmanuel Macron, has personally appointed Catherine Guillouard as President and CEO of RATP. The bus, rail and tram firm runs 60,000 people worldwide, with €6bn annual revenue.
French government-owned RATP runs 1,530 coaches and buses in the UK, making it the UK’s sixth-largest operator; slightly smaller than National Express.
Ms Guillouard succeeds Elisabeth Borne, who was newly-elected as a politician in the Macron government in May, and has been appointed Minister of Transport in Mr Macron’s government.
RATP’s London Sovereign, United and Quality Line brands operate around 1,000 buses in the capital, it also owns Bournemouth Transport, The Bath Bus Company and Selwyn’s Travel.
A board member of Airbus, and previously on the board of the Paris airports group, Ms Guillouard has a degree in EU Law, and was Deputy CEO of global electrical equipment supplier Rexel until earlier this year.