Bus firm uses TikTok videos to recruit uni students

Jamie Watson said he "always wanted to be a bus driver"

A bus company in Portsmouth is using TikTok and Snapchat videos to persuade university students to become part-time bus drivers.

Stagecoach South is offering to train students and arrange shift patterns around their studies.

It wants a pool of skilled drivers who can work early, late and weekend shifts to ease the burden on full-time staff.

Jamie Watson has been driving buses for a year as a way to fund his way through a media degree in Portsmouth.

"I always wanted to be a bus driver," he said.

"I felt so happy, being able to work flexibly part-time with Stagecoach, while studying, which is something I don't think I could have got anywhere else."

Royston Shaw has been a driver for 67 years

Along the A27 in Chichester, 86-year-old Royston Shaw still works full time. He has been a driver for 67 years.

"I do 12-hours shifts, 10 hours of driving," he explained. "Normally 7 till 7, four days a week.

"It's the camaraderie. It's meeting people. Passengers - yes, we do get difficult ones, obnoxious ones. But we get many lovely ones!"

Mr Shaw has recently been handed the honour of best driver at the Chichester depot.

Drivers' performance is measured by data loggers on each bus, and he came out top.

Stagecoach South wants a pool of skilled drivers

What keeps him going decades after others have retired?

"I don't recognise my age at 86. It's just a number. I just enjoy life."

For how much longer?

"Till I'm old enough to retire," he said, trying to keep a straight face.

"Royston is an amazing driver," confirmed Marc Reddy, managing director of Stagecoach South.

"You can drive a bus from the age of 18. There's no limit to when you have to stop, as long as you meet the medical requirements.

"It shows age is no barrier to driving, at either end of the employment range," he added.

"Bus driving can be a role for anybody."