Advantages of Being a London Bus Driver

If you’re considering getting your advance professional PCV licence, one of the jobs you could find yourself doing is working as a London bus driver. Becoming a London bus driver isn’t difficult if you have the right PCV training, which we can help you with.

Here are a few of the advantages of becoming a London bus driver.

Lots Of Jobs

London is a busy city which needs a great deal of public transport to ensure it keeps working efficiently. Buses are one of the most important elements of London’s transport network, if not the most important. Even when the tubes aren’t running, the buses always are. The bus network reaches every corner of London, and runs 24 hours a day, which means there are a huge number of drivers needed to keep it going.

Over 25,000 drivers are needed to run the London bus network, and there are almost always jobs available.

Variety

Once you’ve qualified and been accepted for a job, you’ll find lots of variety. You’ll drive several different routes, even in just a single day, so you’ll see lots of London as you work.  One thing you must make sure of is not to get your routes mixed up, because you could land your company with a fine for going the wrong way, so being alert and checking your route in advance is always the best idea.

Customer Interaction

Of course the biggest responsibility of your day – other than driving safely and getting there on time – is dealing with passengers.  From giving them travel information to greeting them with a smile, your job is to represent London to every tourist, and make every commuter’s day a little bit easier. Because of the variety of routes you drive, and the number of people who use your bus, you’ll meet and interact with lots of different people every day.

This makes driving a London bus an excellent job choice if you want to drive for a living whilst avoiding the more solitary hours of being an HGV driver.

Colleague Interaction

Whilst you might think of driving a London bus as being a solitary work environment, the truth is it’s actually very sociable. You get regular breaks where you can share stories from your day with other drivers. You’ll also work as a team with ticket inspectors from time to time, who will help you to make sure each passenger has a ticket.

Good Pay

Since the new deal that was announced in 2016, London bus drivers’ starting salaries are a minimum of £23,000 per year.  More experienced drivers can expect to earn more, but new starters won’t earn less.