Organisers of the Bus Driver of the Year (BDoY) competition have reiterated their determination that the contest will go ahead in 2021. As evidence of that, they have set Sunday 5 September 2021 as the date for the next National Final in Blackpool.
The coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic led to cancellation of 2020’s National Final. BDoY in 2021 will not only celebrate the professionalism among the nation’s bus drivers. It will also serve as an occasion to remember those drivers who have lost their lives to coronavirus COVID-19 and to pay tribute to the NHS and its staff and all other key workers.
2021’s National Final will be based at the Imperial Hotel on Blackpool’s North Promenade. In a normal year, the organisers would expect around 100 finalists to take part.
Says BDoY Chairman Joe Mackie: “Bus Driver of the Year has the support of all the major bus groups. As the industry’s premier road safety and skills competition, the National Final is the ideal opportunity for operators to present their best drivers to the public and afford them the chance to win valuable prizes and claim the accolade of UK Bus Driver of the Year.
“Having welcomed royalty, politicians, statesmen and stars of both the stage and the screen over the years, it is fitting that the Imperial Hotel will host the nation’s top bus drivers and provide an appropriate tribute to all in the industry who kept services running through the pandemic while also remembering those who lost their lives.”
Further information can be obtained by emailing Operations Director and Vice Chairman Keith Fieldhouse.