Female Firsts on the buses
The 1970s and 1980s are awash with female firsts thanks in part to Mrs Evelyn Denington, the first chairwoman of the Greater London Council's Transport Committee.
London Transport News Special Interview with Mrs Evelyn Dennington, London's Transport Minister (Chairwoman of the GLC Transport Committee) (1973-05-11)TfL Corporate Archives
In an article in May 1973 Evelyn explained, “the First Feminine touch that I should like to bring to London Transport is women bus drivers.”
Here we will take you though a timeline of key female firsts on the buses.
1. Olive Hall, Nov 1971
Olive was the first woman to achieve the conductors medal, awarded to her for ensuring passenger safety throughout her 10 year career.
2. Jill Viner, 25 May 1974
Jill officially becomes the first female bus driver when she obtains her license to carry passengers in May 1974. Described as a model trainee she later explained that her biggest challenge was facing the glare of the spotlight.
Article about Jan Kingston the second woman to quality as a London bus driver (1974-08-01)TfL Corporate Archives
A few weeks later...
Jill may be the name that many know, but her success was quickly followed. Dart playing Jan Kingston is the second woman to quality on 10 July 1974 before starting work out of Upton Park Garage.
3. Doris Pitts, Nov 1974
Recent research has uncovered that the 16th name on our list of early female drivers in training is one Doris Pitts, our first black female bus driver. Sadly no picture of Doris survives in our collection. She qualified in November 1974.
4. Rose Alexander, Aug 1974
Rose became the first bus inspector in August 1974. This was 15 years after a T Simpson had been the first woman to sit the relevant exam, a job however was not an option for her in 1959.
5. Maureen Rogers, Mar 1977
The first woman to operate a bus without a conductor, correcting the term OMO, for One Man Operation to OWO, One Woman Operation.
Notice about the First Woman to Drive a New Metrobus (1979-01-01)TfL Corporate Archives
6. Williamina Bird, Jan 1979
Sadly no picture of Williamina survives but her place in the history books as the first female Metrobus driver is marked with an announcement in the staff magazine.
7. Marina Leaves, Machine Apprentice, Nov 1982
Marina started her apprenticeship in June 1982 at Chiswick. She went on to win the “Robert Ledwith Award” in November for the apprentice making the most progress in the first year, the first woman to do so.
8. Helen Clifford, Aug 1984
Helen qualified aged 18 as London Regional Transport's first female bus mechanic in August 1984. In an interview to mark the milestone Helen explains:
"I have always been interested in Engineering."
She began training at Stamford Hill in 1982.
9. Maggie Goldsmith, Oct 1984
Maggie Goldsmith at 21 was recognised as the youngest female bus driver in the service and was invited to a woman of the year lunch to celebrate the achievement.
10. Betty Stacy, Jan 1985
First appointed as an inspector in 1974, Betty's promotion as the first gold badge bus inspector, or Senior Road Inspector, made her the most senior female "bus boss."
11. Elizabeth Stuart, Jan 1986
By passing the snappily titled "London Visitor and Convention Bureau examination" Elizabeth became the first female blue badge guide working for London Transport Tours.
This Woman Made a Bit of Bus History (1944-07-01)TfL Corporate Archives
For more on the women who stepped up to work on the buses during the Second World War have a look at our Women in the Workforce in WWII story.
Story compiled by TfL using information in records at the Transport for London Corporate Archives. The Corporate Archives seeks to preserve and make accessible records, not to interpret them. A wider range of material is available for physical consultation.
Permission is granted to reproduce for personal and educational use only.
You are all set!
Your first Culture Weekly will arrive this week.