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When I (eventually) get uniform it'll include a reversible hi-viz bodywarmer. Apparantly.

Mate!!! Congratulations. I know you had a shit time for a bit but genuinely made up for you. Genuinely hope we catch up soon.

Whilst it's in my head... has @KruJoe been made aware of this? I know he's been a bit absent of late but he's always been, as Liza Tarbuck would say, a friend of the show.

No HV in the cab, not permitted while driving. Company policy.

Bit of a perfect storm just now; I landed after all the old uniform has been phased out, but there is a shortage of new uniforms as they're on new issues of standard, Megabus and Citylink at my depot 😂

Papped already 😂

The depot I'm at, up here anyway, only has four routes; the X19 and three variations of X25. Covered all of them on Monday passenger then drove them the rest of the week... I learn better when I drive.

My first gaffer was a Yorkshireman in his 60s; his warcry? "The children have a vested interest in getting home, they'll keep you right"

My first proper driving job was at the age of 22. I'd popped into an operator to see the coach painter who I'd known for years. He introduced me to the boss. I was out that afternoon, no CRB check or fuck all, doing a school with a Van Hool B10M. I did my first private hire the following day in a 29-year old Plaxton Supreme PSU5 Leopard before settling into a manual TL11-powered Tiger Paramount. I had to do two weeks training at Stagecoach after starting on the 19th... I've been driving buses since 2008 😂

Week one on the road at Stagecoach; complete. Didn't drive Monday, sat passenger the whole shift. Tuesday was a three bus shift; Enviro 400MMCs 10512, 10519 and Enviro 200MMC 37483; the latter was my first experience with a Voith Enviro 200. Wednesday to Friday were two bus shifts, with 37486 and 10524 on Wednesday, 37483 and 10919 on Thursday and 37489 and 10524 last night. I'm now signed off, free to drive without a mentor and... off for two weeks 😂

I'm still being mentored up here! Expected to sign off on Friday, then on holiday for two weeks then the likelyhood is I'll do a week on my own at Cumbernauld before heading south. I shall keep updating.

It's not been too bad truth be told but I've always been a bus driver, not a coach driver; I ended up on coaches but I've always been ambidextrous 😂

Started a new job last week but yesterday was my first day on the road... lets compare June 27th 2022, versus June 27th 2023 (library picture for yesterday, it was shitting it down all day)...

The London services were hallowed territory for Eastern & Western Scottish, long service men on well appointed kit. Summer Blackpools? You'd be lucky to get a panoramic Y-type Leopard with bus seats and forced air. At least they had boots 😂

We're currently still using last years whatsapp - Talbot is the admin.

One of those Mondeos led to the purchase of the Council Estate. The Mondeo was the least reliable car I've ever owned, and it was split new at the time. Drove well, would try a 2.0TDCi now they're old and in budget again.

Following on from this... a Terracan!

Started a new job on Monday. This is in the carpark...

Never been a taxi driver but I will say that in the sixteen years I've been driving buses, be it on days, nights, lates, earlies, whatever; I've never once had a problem driving at any time without a bandit screen, but with a bandit screen it's open season for every tit and their granny to have a go.

Not struggling enough; nine days to even get a response from Killie then lost my application. Cumbernauld were next day to arrange an interview, and even that was on a holiday Monday.

All domestic work, no EU; Cumbernauld is predominantly an EU depot so only three domestic routes up here, and all red bus in London. No megabus, no Citylink, no National. £47k a year it works out before overtime. Similar gigs on across the company, Kilmarnock, Dumfries and Stranraer depots also taking part.

It's a split working arrangement; minimum 39 hours at my home base (Cumbernauld in this case) and 50 hours in London, both over five days. Scotland rate is £12.59/hr rising to £13.13/hr, London is £17.45/hr at present. The rota is a ten week rotation; 3 weeks London, 3 weeks Cumbernauld, 3 weeks London, 1 week holiday. Stagecoach pay travel (by train, plus a shift travelling each way), accomodation (Travelodge apparantly) and £262 per week expenses on the weeks you are away from home. This is before overtime which is paid at an enhanced rate again. In terms of my costs, my commute is up from an average of 37 miles per day to a maximum of 52 miles per day, but this is more than balanced out by the actual commuting itself only being three weeks in ten rather than ten in ten - 2600 miles every ten weeks just now compared to around 1100 every ten weeks going forward. Hopefully things work out and the gig keeps going for a while yet.

I've a few mates from up here doing it just now and without exception they're loving it, though I daresay the wage increase helps with that too.

It's split working but likely either Barking or West Ham? Won't know until I'm allocated. It's a £22k a year increase in wages so planning to stick it out for a while 😂