Stagecoach Operations Manager Advocates for Increased Female Representation in Bus Industry

The new operations manager for a bus company has expressed her desire to encourage more women to join the industry. Hema Russell, based in Peterborough, holds the distinction of being Stagecoach’s only female operations manager in the Eastern region. She is deeply committed to fostering greater gender diversity and aims to see an increase in female recruits. Russell stated, “I’d like to get rid of the myth – women can drive buses.” She commenced her career as a bus driver in 2007, in her 30s, during a period when the sector was notably male-dominated. She recounted, “Some of the passengers used to ask if I was old enough to drive.” Russell also shared her positive experience, saying, “I loved the freedom. It is not difficult to drive a bus, you just need to gauge the size of what you’re driving.” Ms Russell’s arrival in Peterborough followed her tenure as a global ambassador for the Go-Ahead London bus company. She was also responsible for managing the sole fully electric fleet of buses outside of China, located at the Waterloo bus depot. In Peterborough, she noted that women drivers number nine or ten out of a total cohort of 140. Russell articulated her aspirations, stating, “I would like to think I could be a role model. I’d also like to see more women in the control team co-ordinating the buses, and more female engineers.” She observed, “Some people soften when they see the bus driver is a woman, and you go through training to help defuse situations.” Ms Russell fully supports the ‘Buses against Abuse’ campaign, backed by Stagecoach, which aims to assist women in vulnerable situations to reach a safe place. She describes drivers as the “eyes and ears” regarding street occurrences. She added, “By publicising it in this campaign, it lets people know that we are there for them.” Ross Barton, operations director of Stagecoach East, commented, “Hema is an impressive leader who has the skills and experience to take the local bus network in a very positive direction.” Regarding her new position in Peterborough, Ms Russell characterized her management style as “assertive not aggressive.” She intends to expand the business in what she identifies as a “growing city” and praised the welcoming atmosphere she has encountered in Peterborough. She remarked, “People respect other people’s diversity, everyone welcomes different people. I really like that.” Information regarding Peterborough news can be found on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram, and X. Copyright for this content is held by BBC in 2024, with all rights reserved. The BBC states it is not responsible for the content of external sites and provides information on its approach to external linking.