Companies: SGC   

Brian Souter, co-founder and chief executive of FTSE 250 transport group Stagecoach, has announced a profits jump, buoyed by people switching to buses and trains on the back of carbon footprint concerns.

For the year to 30 April, Stagecoach, which runs South West Trains and Megabus and recently snared the contract for the East Midlands rail franchise, achieved underlying pre-tax profits of £162 million, a rise of 38 per cent, on sales up 12 per cent to £1.5 billion, figures that were welcomed by City analysts.

Souter said environmental issues had had a major impact on both bus and rail. ‘In the South, particularly the cathedral cities, we’re seeing a modal shift onto the bus,’ he was quoted as saying, adding that commuters were looking for ‘high-quality and green’ transport alternatives to the car. Cambridge, Oxford, Exeter, Gloucester, Winchester and Canterbury all saw a noticeable shift from cars to public transport.

He explained that on longer routes, from cities such as Manchester and Liverpool, many consumers now seemed to prefer to travel by train rather than aeroplane.

Based in Perth, Scotland, and worth £1.3 billion, Stagecoach’s operations span the UK and North America, where the group employs around 27,000 people and runs 11,000 buses and trains.