Oxford Bus Group celebrate staff excellence in Really Amazing Awards night

• Seven colleagues celebrate a combined 190 years of long service  
• Inspirational staff rewarded for outstanding contributions
• Bus sectors’ unsung heroes hailed for exceptional public service

The Oxford Bus Group celebrated the achievements of its staff at its ‘Really Amazing Awards’ ceremony held at the prestigious Ashmolean Sculpture Gallery.

Members of the teams at Oxford Bus Company and its sister companies Thames Travel, Carousel Buses and City Sightseeing Oxford gathered to mark the successes of colleagues.

Staff scooped the coveted awards in nine categories, rewarding long service and exceptional performance by teams and individuals in Oxford Bus Group. Colleagues directly nominated the winners, bar the Long Service Awards winners, and these were narrowed down to a shortlist of three in each category in advance of the evening.

The Long Service Award celebrated a combined 190 years of service by seven colleagues. Mick Trafford was rewarded for a remarkable 35 years’ service and Gordon Boland for 30 years’ service.

Kamini Patel, City Sightseeing Oxford Travel Shop Supervisor was awarded the Customer Hero Award. Kamini, who has received 66 customer commendations, was recognised for consistently delivering an exceptional customer experience and going above and beyond for customers. 

Martyn Ballinger of Oxford Bus Company was awarded Engineer of the Year, with his ability to adapt to continued change to on-board electrical systems being highlighted.

Oxford Bus Company Assistant Operations Manager Marta Wodzinska scooped the Rising Star award for her rapid growth within the business. Carousel Buses driver Shamas Kayani, who was the first driver recruited into the business by its previous owner-operators in 2003, received the Lifetime Star award.

Thames Travel bus driver Gary Candler received the Unsung Hero award and the Bicester Village drivers scooped the A Team gong for working together as a great team. Thames Travel and Carousel Buses Operations Manager Pawel Polewski won Manager of the Year, rewarding his exemplary leadership and progression in the business. 

A gold, silver and bronze award for "Star of the Year" for 2022 was awarded, reflecting the high calibre of entries. Carousel Buses driver Paul Harris won bronze, with Oxford Bus Company driving standards officer Gwyn Smith taking silver. Oxford Bus Company driver James Woodwards received the prestigious gold award.

The night was hosted by Oxford Bus Company Managing Director Luke Marion and Martin Dean, Go-Ahead Managing Director for UK Regional Bus, with comedian Jon Courtenay providing the entertainment.  The event was sponsored by Ticketer, Hanover Displays, Mercedes, EVM, Nationwide Cleaning and Michelin Tyres.

Luke Marion, Oxford Bus Company Managing Director, said: “It was fantastic to get together and celebrate the people who have done really amazing work to ensure we consistently deliver a first-class service to our passengers. We also recognised our colleagues who have given a significant number of years’ service to the company.

“There are so many unsung heroes within our group of businesses who do an exceptional job, providing first class public service and they should be very proud of their achievements. This was our fifth Really Amazing Awards ceremony and as we continue to recover strongly from the pandemic and prepare for our Oxford city fleet to go electric it’s never been more important that we recognise and reward people who are performing strongly.”