As a child, Dan Trent had an interest in coaches and buses. Now 32, and running a successful operation, he’s employed an 18 year-old driver whose career path looks remarkably similar
Toby Cullum is one of the rarest of coach and bus industry employees. He’s had an interest in coaches and buses since the age of four, but now, having celebrated his 18th birthday this summer, he’s already being seen as someone who could pick up the management reins of a coach and bus operator in the years to come.
Toby works for Dan’s Coach Travel, a small Suffolk-based operator run by Dan Trent, himself only 32.
Dan set up the business in 2018 after what he describes as being entirely disillusioned with working for other local operators.
“Toby and I share a similar start in our careers,” he explains. “When we were children we both had a fascination with coaches and buses. In my case, one of my schoolteachers recognised that interest and introduced me to John Cresswell who ran John’s Tours in Stowmarket. John was a larger than life character, known in the industry as ‘Big John’. When time permitted I used to go to the yard and help clean his coaches. He had a real pride in his vehicles, a pride that must have rubbed off on my teenage self as vehicle presentation remains a quality point for me to this day.”
Dan passed his PSV test in 2011, age 18, with another local operator, Squirrel’s Coaches.
“I got my full licence as soon as I was 21,” he says. “For various reasons I ended up working for a number of different local operators, but I was restless. I struggled working for others. They didn’t always do things the way I felt they should be done! So, in 2018, age 25, I realised that if I wanted things to be done right, I needed to do it my way. I decided to go it alone, setting up Dan’s Coach Travel with one coach, a 1993 53-seat Volvo Van Hool Alizee. Here we are, seven years down the inevitable rocky road, but I’m pleased I did what I did. I have a great team around me and things are moving along nicely.”
Early succession planning
Talking of Dan’s team brings us back to Toby’s story. It’s a story that might sound rather familiar.
“I’ve loved coaches since I was about four years old,” recalls Toby. “I remember always wanting to be a bus or a coach driver. My school bus was occasionally driven by Dan and I remember asking him all sorts of questions. In my early teens I found myself cleaning Dan’s coaches at weekends and during the holidays.”
Dan picks up the story.
“Toby was keen. He often demonstrated he knew as much about our vehicles as I did. As he grew older I said to him that if he wanted to join us after leaving school we would put him through his test. His parents were very supportive, recognising the passion that he felt for the industry. But this isn’t just a story about an 18-year-old working for a coach company. Toby has said many times that he wants to get his full licence as soon as he’s 21, and then work towards obtaining his Transport Manager CPC. There’s a real possibility that in just a few years, with more experience under his belt, he will be able to take some of the reins. For me, that would be ideal. I do like the responsibility of running the company, but I also like getting out and about behind the wheel, meeting people. I’m far too young to be thinking about succession planning in the normal sense, but if Toby’s enthusiasm and commitment continues, as it looks like it will, then we both have exciting times to look forward to.”
Toby’s enthusiasm is clear to see.
“To be honest, I love the job,” he says, “so it’s not hard to be cheerful. Doing what I do, and looking at the career opportunities ahead, I can’t think of anything more exciting.”
But in an industry where it’s often a challenge to recruit younger staff, Dan has had some success.
“We’re very lucky,” he says. “We have a good proportion of younger staff among our five full-time and 10 casual employees. We’ve sometimes struggled with driver turnover. Some were keen to begin with and I really try to work with them to ensure their work fits around their personal circumstances. But on several occasions we’ve been let down. That’s partly the reason why I’m not looking to expand. It frightens me thinking how we might find new people whom we can trust.”
Best in the business
Dan is Transport Manager. Working alongside him is Matt Howard, the company’s Workshop Manager, and someone who has been instrumental in ensuring business success.
“In July 2024 we opened a new workshop on this site,” explains Dan. “We have vehicle lifters, together with a rolling road for brake testing. Matt’s skills mean he can do most of the work. It’s rare for us to have send a vehicle away for maintenance. However, if we didn’t have the workshop, and because of expensive hourly rates using an external supplier, I’m not sure we would still be here!”
Dan also sends plaudits to what he describes as a great team of local suppliers.
“To me they’re the best in the business!” he says. “It’s the relationships we have with those suppliers that makes the job, if not easy, then certainly easier. I want to mention some names: K & M Tyres in Elmswell, SNJ Auto Electrics on Canvey Island, Coach and Commercial Windscreen Repair Services in Norwich, RJ’s Auto Electrical in Stowmarket, Liam at Anglia Truck Services, DNS Commercials for paint, and Nick Trimmers for upholstery.”
Always pre-owned
The fleet itself is an interesting mix of older but well maintained vehicles, most carrying ‘DCT’ cherished registrations and each carrying a name, whether it’s a name of a former driver, a local teacher, or in the case of the front-line day excursion coach, simply ‘Bluebell’.
Three buses: a Scania OmniCity, a Scania OmniLink, and one Wright Solar-bodied Scania operate on local rail replacement work and on service DB1 between Stowmarket and Bury St Edmunds, a route operated commercially during the week, and contracted to Suffolk County Council on Saturdays. On the day that routeone visited, Dan had just bought another Scania Solar from Coach Services at Thetford to replace the oldest member of the fleet.
Dan notes that until very recently he had two 70-seat Van Hool Alizee coaches in the fleet.
“We didn’t have enough work for them and the configuration meant we couldn’t use them on any other work,” he says. “We’ve just sold one and the other is returning to being a 53 seater.”
Making up the coach fleet is a Volvo B12M with 53-seat Plaxton Panther bodywork.
“All our coaches have been pre-owned,” says Dan. “I think it’s very unlikely I will ever buy new. I think that’s something that Matt, my Workshop Manager, agrees with wholeheartedly!”
Paper and digital
Supporting the driving and engineering team is Hannah Upson, Dan’s twin sister, who looks after administration, the day excursion programme and the website. Supporting everyone is Dan and Hannah’s mother, Wendy.
“In terms of administrative support we use AssetGo for our tachograph analysis, and our service buses are fitted with TransMach ticket machines,” says Dan. “But we’re still very traditional in using pen and paper in the office. We still use defect cards and manual walk-round checks, although we are looking to upgrade from paper to a digital approach for our private hire bookings. We don’t belong to any trade organisations. The nature of the work we do means the benefits would be somewhat limited.”
Looking ahead, Dan is pragmatic about the future.
“We’re doing what’s about right for us,” he says. “I don’t want to over commit. When new work comes in I look to see which of my drivers will be able to do it. If I can’t allocate a driver then we don’t take the work. I’ve been asked why do I do this? I feel much the same as I did eight years ago. I’m enthusiastic and still don’t think I could work for anyone else. Toby coming through the ranks is a real bonus. The job can be really rewarding and I’d miss doing it. There’s another aspect. We provide coaches and buses that enable people to travel around and have a good time. But above all, I’m proud to say I have a great team. I do feel a responsibility for my staff. I can’t imagine doing anything else!”
