New MD takes driving seat at trentbarton

trentbarton’s group commercial director Tom Morgan has officially become managing director of all the bus operators owned by the firm’s parent company Wellglade.

The move follows the departure of trentbarton and Kinchbus boss Jeff Counsell, who retired last month after almost half a century in the bus industry.

Wellglade owns a host of operators including Midland General, Notts & Derby and TM Travel.

Morgan said: “It’s an honour to lead our wonderful teams, fronted by our friendly local drivers. Working across the group, benefits all the operators and enables us to take advantage of closer cooperation.

“There is more and more crossover between fully commercial and supported services, and the group structure now means we are best placed to take advantage of all new opportunities regardless of their type.

“trentbarton and Kinchbus will remain a major focus for me and I will also be supporting the great managers who run all our operators. I want all our teams to be empowered to think of their team as their own business that they can develop and improve, enhancing their key role within the communities they serve.”

“The number one challenge remains getting more people back on buses, so we will be building on our really strong relationships with our local councils to overcome the biggest obstacle we face – congestion”, Morgan added.

“We can’t solve that problem alone but we can, and will, work with local authorities to identify the biggest traffic pinch points and come up with solutions and cooperate with them to implement those answers.”

Wellglade chairman Brian King said: “Tom has a wide experience of the bus companies in our group, having held various positions over the last few years from operating depots to heading up our commercial and marketing functions.

“We wish him well in his new role as managing director of those bus companies. Alongside the recent arrival of John Bickerton as group engineering director, the group is now better positioned for our operators to create synergies and seize new opportunities.”

Morgan joined Wellglade in 2009 to work on the Nottingham Tramlink project and has since held a variety of senior roles at trentbarton and Kinchbus.