WOMEN are being urged to jump into the driving seat of the city’s buses and take up a new career.

Oxford Bus Company has launched a campaign to find more female drivers to transport its 17 million annual passengers.

Just 25 out of the company’s 500 bus drivers are women, making up only five per cent of the driving workforce.

Oxford Bus Company managing director Phil Southall said: “Women make up two thirds of our passengers and it’s only right that women are well represented in the driver’s seat too.

“But we’d also like to recruit female engineering apprentices as well.”

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Service controller Tracey Colley joined the company almost 12 years ago after watching her father driving his bus.

The mother-of-two from Witney said: “My dad was a bus driver in Fishguard in Wales and when I was a girl I used to go out with him on his bus as a passenger.

“I was able to see what was involved with the job and I also liked the idea of being a bus driver.”

Ms Colley, who still drives the company buses on occasions, said women should not feel overwhelmed by steering the large buses on Oxford’s narrow streets.

She added: “At one time being a bus driver was a physically demanding profession and that might have put women off taking up the job. But now buses are automatic and have power steering so you don’t need a huge amount of brute strength.

“It’s still a challenging job, making judgements in difficult traffic situations and dealing with the public. But you don’t need to be built like a woman weightlifter.”

She acknowledged that the pressures of family life could put women off but insisted the job can fit easily into a mother’s life.

“It worked pretty well for me to be honest,” she said. “There are always colleagues who are happy to swap shifts. Already many of the men change shifts to fit in with their wife or partner’s work pattern or childcare.”

Despite being surrounded by men in the workplace, Ms Colley said her family welcomed her decision to enter a male-dominated arena.

She added: “My mum and dad were thrilled I became a bus driver. I’m one of seven brothers and sisters and I’m the only one that followed my dad into bus driving.

“Men and women drivers approach the job differently and I have nothing but praise for my male colleagues, but women bring many different qualities to the job. They can show great awareness of what’s going on around them and are very good with passengers.”

The bus company’s recruitment drive comes as organisers of Oxford International Women’s Festival prepare for this year’s celebrations, which start tomorrow.

Ms Colley and her female colleagues will be taking part in a march along Broad Street from 12pm to mark the start of the festivities.

The festival runs for a fortnight and features various events celebrating women’s achievements in sport, science, politics, health, film, literature, theatre and more.