National Express boosted by train strikes and Queen’s funeral

Bus and coach group National Express has posted sales up by a third and said it stepped up services during recent UK rail strikes and the Queen’s funeral.

The company reported a 33% rise in overall group revenues in its third quarter to September 30 as passenger demand rebounds following the pandemic.

It said its UK coach operations are now 78% full – up from 58% a year ago and better than the 70% seen in the same quarter in 2019 before the pandemic struck.

The firm added that demand is now “well in excess” of pre-Covid levels on several of its UK inter-city routes, while commercial passenger demand is running at around 90% of 2019 levels and up 24% year on year.

Its services have also become key during recent train strikes and throughout the Queen’s funeral.

National Express said: “Our ability to react quickly to events means that we were able to provide more services during rail strikes, and we were proud to play a part in supporting the Metropolitan Police during the Queen’s funeral.”

The firm said it is facing inflation of around 4% over the next year, with rising costs kept under control thanks to long-term supply agreements and price increases.

It added: “Staff cost negotiations are ongoing and are progressing in line with our expectations.”

National Express also said it is beginning to make progress on addressing the driver shortage in America, with 40% extra recruitment year on year.

“Early signs are encouraging, but the market remains challenging and this is our key area of focus in school bus,” it said.

Group chief executive Ignacio Garat said: “We continue to see strengthening passenger numbers in our coach businesses in the UK and Spain, and we are focused on meeting our driver recovery targets for the full year in our North America school bus division.

“We are well positioned for the current inflationary environment with long-term supply contracts, fuel hedging, and a proven ability to pass through price increases over time.”