Martin Marsh described smoking as an ‘antiquated notion’ as he announced it had been banned at the company’s Cambridge depot of Stagecoach East which he joined last October as operations manager.
The Cowley Road depot has put in place the new rule, requiring anyone who wants to either smoke or vape to leave the site.
“The health benefits of giving up smoking are absolutely without question, so I really hope that this move will help some of our colleagues to stick to their New Year’s resolutions to kick the habit,” he said.
“At Stagecoach, one of core values is that we strive to ‘do the right thing’, and smoking is fast becoming an antiquated notion, which is scientifically proven to contribute to health problems, as well as being a significant contributor to lost productivity in the workplace.
“We want to give the best possible service to our customers, so this is another step on that journey.”
The depot runs services throughout the city and out to places such as Haverhill, Saffron Walden, Cambourne, Cottenham, Waterbeach and Fulbourn.
Martin has extensive experience at Stagecoach East, having previously been interim operations manager at both Cambridge and Peterborough, and then operations manager in Bedford.
On his appointment to the Cambridge job, he explained one of his priorities was to improve his colleagues’ health and wellbeing.