Passengers warned of possible disruption to buses

There are 10 full-time vacancies for bus drivers on the Isle of Man

Bus passengers on the Isle of Man have been warned of possible cancellations of weekend services due to driver shortages.

Isle of Man Transport (IOMT) said Saturday and Sunday Bus Vannin services relied on drivers working overtime and a recruitment process to fill 10 vacancies was underway.

The government division said it was expecting "difficulties in fulfilling some services" but updates on affected routes would be provided.

Disruption last weekend saw 23 services out of 489 scheduled journeys scrapped over the two days due to a lack of drivers to operate the routes.

In a post on social media, IOMT said the number of services actually cancelled during the period was lower than the number that had been highlighted as being at risk at the start of the weekend.

While many staff continued to work additional hours, the bus timetable required drivers to work overtime, "particularly at weekends", which was "optional", it said.

A drivers' hours "must also be kept within daily and weekly agreed limits for safety reasons", and it could be less than 24 hours beforehand that it became clear a service could not be run, it added.

Passengers have been encouraged to use an online app to track buses and arrival times, or call the Welcome Centre for help.