Bus and coach drivers, at companies such as Alpine Travel in North Wales, have been revealed as the UK’s most thanked workers, receiving a thank you on average 37 times a day – five times greater than the national average. According to statistics 84% of passengers in Wales thanked their drivers.

As many as four in 10 bus and coach drivers get thanked over 50 times a day; dwarfing other sectors like healthcare and retail where just 1% and 3% of workers are thanked 50 times a day respectively.

The research of 2,000 passengers and 1,158 bus and coach drivers also found four fifths of Brits thank their driver, with nine in ten drivers saying a thank you positively affects their wellbeing.

The research commissioned by the Confederation of Passenger Transport as part of their Thank You Driver campaign, aims to encourage more people to become a bus or coach driver.

CPT members Alpine Travel’s Chris Owens said: “Here at Alpine, our drivers pride themselves on keeping local communities connected and thrive on getting people to where they want to go. Being thanked plays a huge part in their role, and it is great to see such high levels of thanks for bus and coach drivers.”

Being appreciated was listed as one of the best things about being a bus or coach driver with over half saying they felt their work was rewarding – according to the research the role offers seven of the top ten things that UK workers value most.

These include meeting lots of different people; working without supervision; working solo; serving the community; being thanked and appreciated; good work life balance; and training opportunities.

Graham Vidler, Chief Executive of the Confederation of Passenger Transport said: “It is never too late for those feeling unappreciated in their current profession to make the switch to become one of the UK’s most thanked workers. Especially given most bus and coach operators joined after working other jobs and most of the UK population possess a driving licence which will enable them to start training right away.”

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