Former National Express senior leader Chris Hardy has been named Group Business Development Director by Arriva Group.
Mr Hardy will take up that position from 30 September and sit on the Arriva management board. He will be “instrumental in driving Arriva Group’s growth agenda,” the business says, and his experience will be leveraged as it looks to grow “across Europe.”
With Mobico and National Express, Mr Hardy was most recently Managing Director of the coach division and prior to that, Commercial Director. He also has time with KPMG on his CV, during which he developed a strong corporate finance background, and a Batchelor’s and Master’s degree in biochemistry from the University of Oxford.
Speaking about the recruitment of Mr Hardy, Arriva Group CEO Mike Cooper says: “This is an important appointment for the execution of our strategy and I am looking forward to welcoming Chris to the leadership team.
“We will benefit from the wealth of experience he brings with him to Arriva as we look to grow our business and consolidate our position as one of Europe’s leading passenger transport companies. We have a strong ambition for this company and Chris will be an instrumental addition to the management board at a critical point in our journey.”
Appointment of Mr Hardy follows the purchase of Arriva by I-Squared Capital, which completed earlier in 2024. The operating group says that going forward, it intends to be at the heart of the agenda around passenger transport’s role in society, “working alongside transport authorities across Europe to create the right conditions to grow usage and work towards fleet decarbonisation.”
How Mr Hardy’s strong experience in coach may factor into Arriva’s plans in the UK remains to be seen. It has thus far not joined some other large groups in expanding its reach in that segment.
