Recently-installed Transport for London (TfL) Director of Buses Glynn Barton (pictured, above) – who also holds the position of Interim Chief Operating Officer – is to leave the organisation at the end of May. Mr Barton will take up the position of Chief Operations Officer of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council.
Mr Barton was named incoming Director of Buses by TfL in early December 2023. It said then that he would take up the role in March, but now notes that he did so late last year.
A recruitment operation to source a successor as Director of Buses will now commence. The Chief Operating Officer role will be taken up on a full-time basis by Claire Mann, currently Managing Director of FirstGroup subsidiary South Western Railway, on 3 April.
A handover period will commence then ahead of Mr Barton’s departure. Ms Mann will announce any interim arrangements for Director of Buses once she is in post.
Mr Barton has been Interim COO since October 2022. In that position he is responsible for ensuring that TfL’s directly operated and contracted services and operations are planned and maintained effectively.
Over 22 years with TfL, Mr Barton has held various senior operational roles, including at the London 2012 Olympics and for the implementation of cycling infrastructure across the capital. He was also heavily involved in transport for the Platinum Jubilee, the passing of HM Queen Elizabeth II, and the coronation of Charles and Camilla.
Speaking about his departure from TfL, Mr Barton says: “I have always worked to put customers at the heart of what we do. It is difficult to leave a role that is as fulfilling as supporting and improving London, but it is the right time for a new challenge.
“And in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, I will be working to serve an area in which I grew up and for which I have great affection.”
With BCP Council, Mr Barton will oversee all the local authority’s in-house place-based services. His role will cover a range of service areas including environment, planning and destination, investment and development, commercial operations, infrastructure and customer, and arts and property.
