Stagecoach to create 80 contact centre jobs at Perth HQ as bus firm goes green

Bus operator Stagecoach is to create 80 jobs at a new customer contact centre within the group’s Perth headquarters.

The “one-stop phone and digital contact point” for customers is planned to open in spring 2022.

Chief executive Martin Griffiths said: “We were founded in Perth four decades ago and are proud to have retained our headquarters in the city ever since.

“There is a huge opportunity to attract people to more sustainable public transport in the years ahead as national governments look to move to net zero. Delivering the best experience to every single customer is central to helping people make the switch away from cars to public transport.”

The UK’s first fleet of six fully electric buses serving rural communities was unveiled by SP Energy Networks in partnership with Stagecoach West Scotland. Picture: Jeff Holmes

The news came as the UK’s first fleet of six fully electric buses serving rural communities was unveiled by SP Energy Networks in partnership with Stagecoach West Scotland.

Five of the new all-electric buses were funded by £2 million from SP Energy Networks’ £20m Green Economy Fund and will operate on a Stagecoach route connecting villages along the Irvine valley with Kilmarnock town centre.

Due to the length of the rural bus route, this project will be the first in Scotland to introduce “opportunity charging” where buses benefit from rapid and intense charges of power on route, rather than the traditional technique that sees the vehicles charging overnight.

The bus operator’s new zero-emissions buses will save some 680 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually and will provide bus riders with a “smoother and quieter experience”, as well as improving the local air quality.

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