Bennetts Coaches has been crowned Network Operator of the Year at the annual National Express Operator Partnership (NEOP) Awards for the third consecutive year.

The 16^th edition of the awards took place at the Best Western Plus Windmill Village Hotel in Coventry.

The competition sees each operator measured based on an evaluation table and the winners determined by their performance and scores in areas such as driver excellence, coach cleanliness and quality and customer service.

(L to R) Alice Rodrigues from Caetano; Alex Jensen, CEO National Express; Simon Alderton, Paul Geroge, Gavin Bennett of Bennetts Coaches; and Ed Rickard, Network Director National Express

Full List of Winners

• Best Fleet – Travelstar European
• Driving Out Harm (Safety Excellence) – Travelstar European
• Go Green Award – Llew Jones International
• Most Improved Operator – National Express Start Hill
• Customer Experience Excellence – Bennetts Coaches
• Driver of the Year – Loris Wharton from Parks of Hamilton Plymouth
• Engineer of the Year – John Bruce Jnr. from Bruces Coaches
• Operational Manager of the Year – Simon Alderton from Bennetts Coaches
• Best Network Operator of the Year – one to five vehicles: E Stott & Sons
• Best Network Operator of the Year – six to 10 vehicles: Worthing Coaches
• Best Network Operator of the Year – 11 to 20 vehicles: Bennetts Coaches
• Best Network Operator of the Year – over 20 vehicles: Edwards Coaches Wales
• Gold Standard Operators: Bennetts Coaches, E Stott & Sons, Edwards Coaches, Parks of Plymouth, Travelstar European
• Overall Network Operator of the Year: Bennetts Coaches

Golden Spanner Awards, recognising operators who have consistently met and exceeded expectations, introducing best practice across engineering:

• Ambassador Travel
• Bennetts Coaches
• Bruces Coaches
• E Stott & Sons
• Edwards Coaches
• Galloway European
• Go North East
• Llew Jones
• Lucketts Bournemouth
• National Express Start Hill
• National Express Wandsworth
• National Express Transport Solutions – Aston
• Oxford Bus Company
• Parks of Hamilton, Plymouth
• Selwyns Travel Runcorn
• Stagecoach Chesterfield
• Kings Ferry Dover
• Travelstar European
• Yeomans Canyon Travel

Sustained High Achievement Awards:

• Travelstar European – 14 consecutive years
• E Stott & Sons – 14 consecutive years
• Bennetts Coaches – 13 consecutive years
• Edwards Coaches Wales – 13 consecutive years
• Bruces Coaches – ten consecutive years
• National Express Transport Solutions Aston – ten consecutive years
• Parks of Hamilton, Plymouth – ten consecutive years
• Edwards Coaches, Bristol – six consecutive years
• Yeomans Canyon Travel – six consecutive years
• Galloway European – five consecutive years
• Kavanagh – achieved their first year

Ed Rickard, Network Director for National Express UK and Ireland, said: “Our partner operators play an essential role in our network and we are delighted to recognise their hard work, dedication and outstanding service through our annual awards. We’re proud to have them on board and extend our heartfelt thanks and congratulations to all the winners!”