A career that gets you out and about!

Geremy has been a bus driver with Transit Systems for five years, enjoying getting out and about and interacting with passengers, while helping the community.

With a great sense of community service and the ability to help customers , Geremy said being on the wheels is a wonderful lifestyle balance.

“I like to interact with the passengers and assist them to be able to safety use public transport and the job itself comes with an ability to have a flexible work/life balance.

“The flexible shifts allow for drivers to have a long or short meal break, which is good as I can get the shopping done, go to my appointments, access the gym – all the while having comradery with work colleagues!” he said.

To get behind the wheel of a 19 tonne bus, which can carry around 60 customers in peak service, Geremy attended a heavy vehicle training centre to obtain the required vehicle license prior.

“After that, I was paired up with a well experienced trainer who steps through the daily operations of using a bus as well as providing safety training,” he said.

Driver training includes being able to understand the length, width, and height of the bus - right through to managing corners, roundabouts and safe acceleration and braking.

“Once I passed the safety training, I was paired up with a buddy driver who assisted by providing in-route service assistance on the road before being able to drive solo,” he said.

Geremy also attended training provided by Transit Systems to help obtain the Driver Accreditation required to be able to drive a passenger vehicle in NSW.

“I've also had the ability to complete a certificate 3 in Driving Operations as well as Advanced Fatigue Management training also provided by Transit Systems,” he said.

Geremy said you get familiar with your surroundings, including the area of operation and understanding road users.

“I focus on being friendly and I am genuinely willing to assist passengers to help get them from A to B.

“It's a rewarding job and you’re able to be your own boss. I like to be outside and not work in an office, I’m always moving around with the scenery changing.

“If you enjoy driving, then this job is for you. It will take you places you may not have been before and provide you with a stable and regular income - with the ability to work overtime if and when you want to,” he said.

Geremy loves socialising with his work colleagues, and there’s service route he loves to operate.

“I really enjoy route 530 (Burwood to Chatswood). It's a long route that navigates through quite a lot of suburbs and goes over a major river. There are a lot of jacarandas along the way and when they are blooming in season, it's just lovely to see all the streets lined in purple,” he said.

Geremy added that every day is memorable because they're always different.

Michael McGee, Transit Systems Chief Executive Officer, said driving a bus suited many different personalities and lifestyles.

“We find there is no one type of person that suits being a bus driver - we’ve got university students through to the semi-retired.

“We actively encourage a diverse mix of people, skills and interests to join the bus industry as it’s important we reflect our diverse customers and communities we serve every day. It’s wonderful to see the comradery in action, and it’s so pleasing to see people leveraging the lifestyle benefits.” he said.