National Express marks 16 years of Partner Operator Awards with celebration of exceptional performance
We accept:
Published: 26th April 2024
Bennetts Coaches crowned National Express Operator of the Year
L-R: Alice Rodrigues from Caetano, Alex Jensen, CEO National Express, Simon Alderton, Paul Geroge, Gavin Bennett of Bennetts Coaches, Ed Rickard, Network Director National Express
National Express, the UK's leading coach operator, recently celebrated its partner operators in its annual National Express Operator Partnership (NEOP) Awards, recognising the essential role they play in ensuring the company can provide reliable, safe and comfortable coach travel for millions of passengers every year.
The awards, now in its 16th year, took place at the Best Western Plus Windmill Village Hotel in Coventry, welcoming attendees from across the UK and Ireland.
The NEOP Awards reflect National Express’ commitment to providing the highest standards across its network. Each operator is measured based on an evaluation table and the winners determined by their performance and scores in areas such as driver excellence, coach cleanliness and quality and customer service.
Among the big winners were Bennett’s Coaches, crowned Network Operator of the Year for the third consecutive year. Other winners included Travelstar European for Best Fleet, National Express Start Hill for Most Improved Operator, and Loris Wharton of Parks of Hamilton in Plymouth taking the coveted Driver of the Year title.
Ed Rickard, Network Director for National Express UK and Ireland, praised the exceptional performance and commitment to excellence shown by the winners. He said:
"Our partner operators play an essential role in our network and we are delighted to recognise their hard work, dedication and outstanding service through our annual awards. We’re proud to have them on board and extend our heartfelt thanks and congratulations to all the winners!"
Full List of Winners:
- Best Fleet - Travelstar European
- Driving Out Harm (Safety Excellence) - Travelstar European
- Go Green Award - Llew Jones International
- Most Improved Operator - National Express Start Hill
- Customer Experience Excellence - Bennetts Coaches
- Driver of the Year - Loris Wharton from Parks of Hamilton Plymouth
- Engineer of the Year - John Bruce Jnr. from Bruces Coaches
- Operational Manager of the Year - Simon Alderton from Bennetts Coaches
- Best Network Operator of the Year - one to five vehicles: E Stott & Sons
- Best Network Operator of the Year - six to 10 vehicles: Worthing Coaches
- Best Network Operator of the Year - 11 to 20 vehicles: Bennetts Coaches
- Best Network Operator of the Year - over 20 vehicles: Edwards Coaches Wales
- Gold Standard Operators: Bennetts Coaches, E Stott & Sons, Edwards Coaches, Parks of Plymouth, Travelstar European
- Overall Network Operator of the Year: Bennetts Coaches
Golden Spanner Awards, recognising operators who have consistently met and exceeded expectations, introducing best practice across engineering:
- Ambassador Travel
- Bennetts Coaches
- Bruces Coaches
- E Stott & Sons
- Edwards Coaches
- Galloway European
- Go North East
- Llew Jones
- Lucketts Bournemouth
- National Express Start Hill
- National Express Wandsworth
- National Express Transport Solutions - Aston
- Oxford Bus Company
- Parks of Hamilton Plymouth
- Selwyns Travel Runcorn
- Stagecoach Chesterfield
- Kings Ferry Dover
- Travelstar European
- Yeomans Canyon Travel
Sustained High Achievement Awards:
- Travelstar European - 14 consecutive years
- E Stott & Sons - 14 consecutive years
- Bennetts Coaches - 13 consecutive years
- Edwards Coaches Wales - 13 consecutive years
- Bruces Coaches - 10 consecutive years
- National Express Transport Solutions Aston - 10 consecutive years
- Parks of Hamilton Plymouth - 10 consecutive years
- Edwards Coaches Bristol - 6 consecutive years
- Yeomans Canyon Travel - 6 consecutive years
- Galloway European - 5 consecutive years
- Kavanagh - achieved their first year
Press Office Contact
For all media enquiries and filming opportunities please contact the press office by email pressoffice@nationalexpress.com. For out-of-hours media queries please call 07768 557592 and speak to the on-call press officer.
National Express UK businesses:
National Express Coach, National Express West Midlands, National Express Coventry, Dublin Express, National Express Transport Solutions, National Express Accessible Transport.
Please note, there is a separate communications team for Mobico Group financial and corporate media enquiries.
The press office does not deal with marketing, advertising or sponsorship enquiries. Please email marketing@nationalexpress.com for assistance.
Back to top
Contact Us
Coach Tracker
Buses
