The now annual National Light Rail Awards took place at the Café Royal in London on Wednesday 8th October. Nottingham Express Transit were celebrating as they won three awards at the ceremony whilst South Yorkshire Supertram were also celebrating an award but no other systems in the UK seemingly care they won anything as no other mention of the ceremony can be found anywhere!
The Nottingham Tram Consortium were celebrating the following:
* Team of the Year (for the administration team)
* Highly Commended for Operator of the Year (so obviously another system won this, but seem to be too shy to celebrate the fact)
* Highly Commended for Safety Initiative of the Year
Whilst South Yorkshire Supertram were celebrating the Project of the Year, awarded for the tram upgrade programme.
The administration team at the Nottingham Tram Consortium is only eight strong but they are responsible for a number of duties. These include answering the customer telephone helpline, investigating complaints, administering accounts, staff rosters, revenue, insurance, engineering and human resources. The team has managed to sustain an annual performance monitoring system compliance for answering customer queries within strict guidelines of between 98.5% and 100%.
The highly commended award for the Safety Initiative of the Year was awarded to the innovative “Nerys and Neville” internal poster campaign which communicates safety advice to NTC staff through cartoon strips.
Helen Goulding, General Manager of the Nottingham Tram Consortium, said: “I am delighted about our continued success at these awards, it is rewarding for us to be acknowledged by an external body. The fact that we have been recognised again is testament to the hard work and professionalism of all our staff from Tram Crew to Engineers who all work together to provide the world class tram service that Nottingham is rightly proud of. I would particularly like to congratulate the Administration team on their well deserved Team of the Year Award”.
The Project of the Year award for South Yorkshire Supertram has been awarded for the major tram upgrade project which is due to be completed by January 2009. This has seen each of the trams going through a 42 day improvement programme at the total cost of £3 million. Seats have been re upholstered, dedicated priority seating areas have been fitted, wheelchairs have an improved area, the floor covering has been improved, CCTV has been fitted for security and better information systems have been improved.
With the project being undertaken internally at the Nunnery depot it is a unique achievement as most tram and railway companies in the UK send their vehicles away for similar treatment.
David Young, Head of Transport Integration at SYPTE, said: “This improvement programme has resulted in a better travelling experience for the millions of people who use Sheffield’s iconic Supertram network each year. This is an important part of our strategy to encourage more people to leave their cars at home and use public transport where they can. This is an excellent example of partnership working between ourselves, Stagecoach Supertram and their consultants Atkins Rail. I am delighted it has been recognised by this award. “
Andy Morris, Managing Director of Stagecoach Light Rail, added: “Customer reaction to our tram refresh programme has been excellent and has contributed to the continuing success of the tram network which now carries up to 15 million passengers a year. We are really pleased to win this award which is a tribute to the outstanding work of our dedicated team who carry out the refurbishment work.”
Source: Nottingham Express Transit & SYPTE