Carol Sim has been appointed Operations Director of Stagecoach South. Ms Sim – who was named Rising Star at the 2023 routeone Awards – joins from First Bus, where she latterly held the role of Head of Operations for the South of England.
Ms Sim’s career in the industry began in 2003 with First Bus in Yeovil. She progressed within the group and assumed her most recent position in 2021. In 2019, she took on responsibility as Engineering Change Management Leader, improving efficiency in that discipline.
Reporting to Stagecoach South Managing Director Marc Reddy – also a former routeone Awards winner – Ms Sim will lead an operations team that includes drivers, supervisors, controllers and operations managers that collectively deliver services occupying over 400 buses from nine depots in Hampshire, Surrey and West Sussex.
Mr Reddy has welcomed Ms Sim to Stagecoach, noting that he is “really pleased” to see her join the operator’s senior team.
Adds Mr Reddy: “Her industry experience, successful track record, and people-first approach will be a great asset to us, and I look forward to working closely with Carol to deliver efficient and high-quality bus services across our network for our customers.”
Speaking about her advancement, Ms Sim says: “I am incredibly excited to join the Stagecoach South team.
“I am looking forward to building on the continued success of the business, and getting to know the team, our stakeholders and customers in the coming weeks and months; [and] working to make our services across the network even better for our communities.”
Stagecoach South’s Portsmouth operation was recently named by Transport Focus as having the highest level of overall customer satisfaction among areas captured by the body’s Your Bus Journey survey.