27 April 2007

Bakers Coaches open new depot

Mrs Beverly Bell the North Western Traffic Commissioner was guest of honour on Friday, for the official opening of Bakers Coaches new depot and headquarters building.



In addition to customers and suppliers, other guests included, the constituency MP, Charlotte Atkins, the leader of Staffordshire Moorlands District Council, Ron Locker, Maureen Roberts the deputy Mayor for Biddulph Town Council and Terry Gibson DC Cabinet member for the Environment.



Visitors were given guided tours of the depot covering: vehicle test facilities and workshops; the security installations, fuel storage and monitoring; coach wash and measures taken to protect the environment, driver training and the latest vehicles and ticketing equipment for local bus services. Showpiece for the day was a new luxury touring coach, specially equipped for passengers using wheel chairs.



The event concluded with the planting of a tree outside the building, followed by a blessing by the Reverend, Philip Lockett of the Biddulph Methodist Church.



In his opening address Phil Baker said:



“The £1m investment in The Coach Travel Centre has given us the opportunity to bring everything together onto one site – with more room and scope to expand our business operations.



“The premises are purpose built and designed to meet our business requirements for today and the foreseeable future. One our main aims was to improve working conditions and encourage high quality standards to aid the recruitment and retention of high calibre staff.



“It is important therefore to shake off the Cinderella image of the Coach Industry and present ourselves as a modern progressive business. And above all we want to make Bakers Coaches a profitable business, mindful of career development and committed to excellence in providing customer service.”