Busways, the largest Australian-owned bus operator, has been recognised for its safety initiatives, receiving the 2026 BusNSW Safety Award at the BusNSW Industry Gala Dinner during the Australasia Bus & Coach Expo on 15 July. Busways Chief Executive Officer Will O’Neill and Chris Wolf, Director of Assets and Director of Safety, accepted the award on behalf of the Busways team.

Busways thanks BusNSW for this recognition and acknowledges our team members, whose decisions and actions contribute to safety every day. Everyone from our driving frontline, maintenance, depot operations, safety, and support teams across the business.

The award recognises several years of practical, evidence-led improvements at Busways. Notably, the  Busways DriveSmart program, which has made significant strides in leveraging onboard telematics to garner operational and safety insights to provide coaching and support for drivers at targeted points in the training lifecycle.

Busways has also strengthened our approach to psychosocial safety through the Inside Work program. The program gives employees an opportunity to share honest feedback about the workplace factors affecting their wellbeing. Busways is listening closely and turning that feedback into action, with many small, practical changes already implemented across the business. It is an ongoing cycle of listening, acting, seeking further feedback and continuing to improve.

"This award is a reflection of the culture our people have built," said Busways CEO Will O'Neill. “Safety is a strong focus at every level of Busways, from leadership decisions to the way our teams work across services, depots and workshops,” Mr O'Neill said.

“This award recognises the people across Busways who identify risks, speak up and take practical action every day. I want to particularly acknowledge our safety team and their partnership with functions across the business,” he added.

Director of Assets and Safety Chris Wolf echoed that sentiment. "We have a strong focus on safety across every level of the business. It’s behind everything we do, from how we design a depot to how we train a driver"

“We will always continue learning and driving a higher safety benchmark at Busways. This award is a great achievement, but we know there is a lot more to do, and we are committed to keeping that work going.”

Busways’ broader safety program also includes digital incident and hazard reporting, a Centralised Safety Hotline, SafeTea sessions that provide depot teams with an open forum to raise concerns and suggest improvements, workshop controls designed to reduce risks for maintenance teams, and speed geo-fencing that automatically limits electric bus speeds within depot yards. Together, measures like these make risks more visible, improve response times and support safer decisions across operations.

Busways’ safety journey has been shaped over many years by the people who live it every day, on the road, in depots and behind the scenes. Winning the BusNSW Safety Award is an important milestone that recognises the progress made and reinforces the responsibility to keep improving.