Published on: Monday, 23 October 2017
Last updated: Monday, 23 October 2017
They are renowned for their cheerful, humorous announcements, which have seen Greater Anglia’s social media channels flooded with praise, and this year they recorded their lowest ever levels of absence.
Now Southend Victoria’s driver team has been crowned Team of the Year at the train company’s ‘Everyday Legends’ Awards.
Greater Anglia’s driver team is made up of two driver managers and 81 drivers who operate the trains between Southend Victoria and London Liverpool Street. The team likes to bring some personality to their announcements to help passengers feel welcome and relaxed during their journey.
Greater Anglia’s Managing Director, Jamie Burles, said, “The Southend driver team really deserves this award. Their humorous announcements add warmth and a human touch which makes a big difference to customers’ experience of the train service. I would like to thank them for their efforts to brighten our passengers’ journeys.”
Customers were also asked to nominate their favourite member of staff for an award and they singled out conductor, Angelo Bonandi for special praise, with the Customer Relations Team receiving ‘Highly Commended’.
Francis Mills, Customer Relations, was named the company’s Charity Champion of the Year. Colleagues described him as an ‘inspiration’ after he raised thousands for Batten’s Disease charity the BDFA and Cancer Research UK by cycling from London to Paris and running several marathons including Brighton, Amsterdam - and London twice.
Other winners included Justin Hope who was named Innovator of the Year, Kim Bucknell, Head of Revenue Protection who was named Leader of the Year. Mark Tye, Special Events & Compliance Manager, was nominated for Making Life a Little Easier and David Warwick, Train Service Delivery Manager, was named Best Newcomer.
Greater Anglia’s Managing Director, Jamie Burles, said, “Everyday, colleagues across the network do their utmost to provide excellent customer service and make our passengers’ lives a little easier. I would like to congratulate and thank not only the winners and nominees but everyone across the company who works hard every day to deliver excellent service and pleasant journeys to our passengers."