TfL spends millions on 'conflict courses' for London bus drivers, CLICK HERE

Millions of pounds is being spent on sending the capital’s bus drivers on role-playing courses to help them deal with angry passengers.

All 25,000 drivers, as well as 1,700 support staff, are being sent on the £240 two-day seminars, costing Transport for London a total of £6.5 million.

The courses are run by Southwark-based Steps, whose clients include Disney, Coutts bank and the Metropolitan Police. Workshops “explore the emotional and behavioural” responses of drivers to trouble “in a safe learning environment”. Actors play difficult passengers and drivers advise how to deal with them and reveal their “emotional and behavioural response”.

Sarah-Jane Georges, lead facilitator at Steps, said sessions included “handling conflict”, making announcements and “acknowledging people”.

“The power of drama brings their working world to life,” she said. “[Drivers] think about what behaviours drive them mad and what they appreciate.”

Gareth Powell, TfL’s director of strategy, said: “This is designed to help our drivers deliver even better service.”

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1. And I thought that TfL's operator contracts already provided for driver/operators to achieve an NVQ qualification as part of their training.
2. And their would be less conflict with passengers if Messrs Arriva were to invest in eight replacement double door entry vehicles to replace the current Alexander Dennis (Dart) vehicles on bus route w6