Bus Driver: What is the cost of hiring?

Why recruit a bus driver

Hiring a bus driver is essential if you have a growing fleet of buses, or are looking for drivers to fill an increasing number of route schedules. You should ideally aim to hire bus drivers with excellent knowledge of local routes, and have the right bus driver licence. 

Qualities of a great bus driver:

– Provides excellent customer service to your passengers.

– Helps to build your reputation by taking your passengers to their stops safely and punctually.

– Has a reliable memory for schedules and routes.

Deciding between a full-time vs freelance bus driver

Hiring a full-time, permanent bus driver is a good solution if you have regular work available for your bus drivers. This could be if you need new drivers to fill certain routes, or replace a bus driver who has left your fleet. Hiring a permanent bus driver is usually a good option as it will save you time and money searching for candidates who are familiar with the routes that you need to fill. However, you might hire a bus driver on a temporary basis if you are covering one of your permanent bus drivers who is on sick, holiday or parental leave.

What are the different types of bus driver?

There are many different roles that a bus driver can fill. Taxi companies might look to hire a bus driver to drive a hired coach. Likewise, travel companies might hire a coach or bus to cover field trips. Schools can hire bus drivers to drive children to school within their catchment area. This may be especially useful if some school children live where there are few public transport services. Local authorities will hire bus drivers to cover routes within a particular area. 

• Travel company bus driver: Shows passengers local sights and may provide a guided tour.
• School bus driver: Drives children from a catchment area to school.
• Local authority bus driver: Drives passengers to different stops along area routes.
• Apprentice bus driver: Learns bus driving skills as part of an apprenticeship training course.
• Rail replacement bus service driver: Drives train passengers to a destination train stop via coach if their rail service is undergoing repairs or has temporarily broken down.

Where to find a bus driver

Aim to advertise locally if you are looking for bus drivers who know routes in your area well. You can do this by advertising via local council websites or notice boards, or local jobs boards in cafes, shops and jobcentres. You can also look in local directories for bus drivers in your region. Some bus drivers may travel around the country looking for work, and so new candidates may contact your company directly. Therefore it is important to put your contact details and any bus driver vacancies on your company website. 

To find the right bus driver for your business, consider trying out a few different recruiting strategies:

• Advertising via the local authority: You can advertise bus driver jobs for a particular local authority via a jobs board.
• Local jobs boards: Post a short description of your bus driver job on shop, cafe or jobcentre noticeboards.
• Advertising on your company website: Have a link with contact information and requirements on your website jobs section.
• Attending jobs fairs: Network with transport industry professionals with the right experience at a local jobs fair.

Post your job online: Try posting your job for a bus driver on Indeed to find and attract quality bus driver candidates.

Skills to look for in a great bus driver

A great candidate for a bus driver role will have the following skills and attributes as well as work experience that reflects:

• Good memory for routes
• Coordination skills
• Time management skills
• Customer service skills
• Excellent highway code knowledge

Writing a bus driver job description

A thoughtful description is important for finding qualified bus driver candidates. A bus driver job description includes a compelling summary of the role, a detailed list of duties and responsibilities and the required and preferred skills for the position.

When writing your  job description for a bus driver, consider including some or all of the following keywords to strengthen the visibility of your job posting. These are the most popular search terms resulting in clicks on jobs for bus drivers, according to Indeed data:

• Bus driver
• Driver
• Coach driver
• PCV driver
• Driving
• Trainee
• Driving vacancies
• Trainee bus driver

Interviewing bus driver candidates

Strong candidates for bus driver positions will be confident answering questions regarding:

• Bus driving licence and bus driving experience 
• Duration of shifts and whether they would be interested in a night shift
• Experience dealing with difficult customers
• Money and inventory skills
• Time management strategies

Need help coming up with interview questions? See our list of school bus driver interview questions for examples (with sample answers).