Bus or Coach Driver
Bus drivers safely drive buses or coaches that can carry up to 80 passengers. As part of the job you may be required to work shifts and weekends.
Day-to-day Tasks
- if you are working as a bus driver you will be in charge of taking the money from people who want to ride and making sure passengers have the right tickets or passes to get on
- when passengers board the vehicle, you takes fares or checks tickets and passes
- you offer assistance to vulnerable passengers who have difficulty boarding and getting off the bus
- you will let people know when and where the vehicle is going
- your main job is to drive carefully and stick to the schedule so people get where they're going on time
If you are a coach driver, you may also:
- welcome passengers
- help with putting luggage on and off the coach
- talk to passengers during the trip and give important information over the speaker
- make sure everyone gets back on the coach
- keep the coach tidy and do simple checks to make sure it's working well
- keep records and report incidents and write down how long you've been driving and tell someone if anything goes wrong
Skills and Knowledge
- good customer service skills
- knowledge of public safety and security
- to be thorough and pay attention to detail
- patience and the ability to remain calm in stressful situations
- good geographical knowledge
- the ability to operate and control equipment
Industry Qualifications
In most cases, your employer will carry out on the job training but you may wish to take the necessary qualifications before applying to drive a coach or bus.
IOM
In most cases, your employer will carry out on the job training but you may wish to take the necessary qualifications before applying to drive a coach or bus.
All coach and bus drivers must be over 21 years of age, and have a full driving licence with at least 12 months experience. You then need to complete your PPV training.
UK
All coach and bus drivers must be over 18 years of age, have a full driving licence with at least 12 months experience, and complete a medical and criminal record check. If you are working with children, you will also take part in safeguarding training.
Once you have passed your medical then you can apply for a provisional bus licence that allows you to begin your theory and practical training. This arrives within a few weeks, at which point you can book parts one and two of the Certificate of Professional Competence (CPC) theory test. Parts 3 and 4 of the test involve practical driving and a demonstration, the same as a normal driving test but this time it will be driving a bus. Once you complete all the tests you will receive a Driver CPC card.