Occupation: Stakeholder Engagement Officer (Scotland)
Robert has always had an interest in buses ever since he was a kid.
He currently works with key stakeholders across First Bus in Scotland to make and promote the use of bus as a sustainable, accessible and a green travel method of choice to passengers.
This involves communicating alongside our senior team to many industry partners, for example, Bus Users Scotland, Disability Equality Scotland, as well as elected members in the many areas of
Scotland that we serve.
Robert’s story and why he loves the bus:
“I was 6 years old when I became interested in all of the different colours of the buses moving around at the time and I loved to travel with my family on days out using the bus.
As I’ve grown up, my passion for the bus industry has only developed further. I really like the connectivity that bus networks provide to the people of places that they serve, which shows through the interest that I particularly have in the ever-shifting shape of various bus networks, both now and in the past.
I suppose you could call me a ‘bus route geek’ – I have a bus timetable collection going back about 50 years to back that up!”
A brilliant bus story…
“My best bus story comes from a few years back.
I used to work in a travel information centre at Buchanan Bus Station in Glasgow and, one day, a passenger in a rather distressed state approached me. They’d been on a Land’s End to John O’Groat’s type of charity fundraiser and their challenge was to complete the trip only using their concessionary travel status.
They were on the final leg of their trip, but their journey from Glasgow on their planned coach hadn’t worked out and they risked being stranded. Long story short, I managed to work out a journey
plan to get them home using the local bus networks that would be guaranteed to accept their concessionary travel status.
I recall most of the trip being from Glasgow to somewhere in Lancashire and I managed to knit a journey plan together with changes of bus at Cumnock, Dumfries and Carlisle. I also phoned ahead to each changeover point/depot to make them aware of the situation in the hope that each change of bus was more likely to be guaranteed.
I learned a few weeks later that my efforts had paid off when I’d received a package at work containing some sugary treats and a lovely letter thanking me for my help. The trip had gone smoothly and their trip home was completed without any problems.
A great result that proved the excellent interconnectivity of buses across the country!”
