Hannah Samways, 19, has opened a career as a bus driver with Go South Coast subsidiary Morebus in the Bournemouth and Poole areas. She recently passed her PCV test at the first time of asking and will proceed to productive driving as soon as classroom training and route learning are complete.
She has described herself as “pleasantly surprised” at the number of women are already in the bus drive role. Hannah joins from a customer service background and counts waiting tables and working at a COVID-19 test centre among her previous occupations.
“After that, I was struggling to find a job I was really interested in. My gymnastics coach, Chris Hardstaff, had joined Morebus in 2018 and he knew that I had passed my car driving test in 2020. He recommended I contact Morebus about a career as a bus driver. At first, I didn’t think he was serious – but I asked him more about the role.
“He really sold me the benefits, so I thought I would give it a go.” Training was undertaken in the operator’s own school.
Go South Coast Managing Director Andrew Wickham says the business values previous customer experience “very highly” in driver recruits. “Those who travel with us do so again and again, partly because we offer reliable services but also because of how hard our courteous drivers work to provide them with a comfortable and enjoyable journey,” he adds.
“I wish Hannah all the best in her career with us and I look forward to seeing her out on the roads across Dorset very soon.”
