Grant Palmer’s Jo Service Named Best Bus Service at National Transport Awards 05/10/2026
Grant Palmer is celebrating after our Jo service was named Best Bus Service at the 2026 National Transport Awards, a fantastic national achievement for a bus route right here in Bedfordshire.
The award recognises the success of Jo since it first took to the road in February 2025, providing new and improved connections between Linmere, Houghton Regis, Dunstable and Luton, as well as serving major employment sites including the LIDL Regional Distribution Centre.
Jo was originally introduced as an hourly weekday service, developed by Grant Palmer in partnership with Central Bedfordshire Council and Linmere, the developers behind the growing new community at Houghton Regis. Since then, the service has grown considerably as more people have chosen to use it for journeys to work, education, shopping and leisure.
The success of the route has allowed Grant Palmer to continue improving the service, with Jo now providing three buses per hour across key parts of the route and offering convenient connections with the wider Luton & Dunstable Busway network.
The National Transport Awards celebrate some of the very best transport projects and services from across the UK, making the award a particularly proud achievement for Grant Palmer as a local, family-owned Bedfordshire bus company.
Thomas Manship, Commercial Manager at Grant Palmer, said:
“We are incredibly proud that Jo has been named Best Bus Service at the National Transport Awards. What makes this award particularly special is that Jo is a local bus service which thousands of people now use as part of their everyday lives.
“Jo is a great example of what can be achieved through partnership working. Central Bedfordshire Council and Linmere have worked closely with us to develop the service as the area has grown, while the response from our customers has given us the confidence to keep improving it.
“This award also belongs to our drivers and the team behind the scenes who deliver Jo every day. Most importantly, we want to say a huge thank you to everyone who travels with us. Every journey helps demonstrate the importance of good local bus services and supports us in continuing to invest and improve.”
Jo was created to put sustainable public transport at the heart of the growing Linmere development, which will ultimately provide more than 5,000 homes alongside schools, employment and community facilities. Working closely with Central Bedfordshire Council and Linmere, Grant Palmer has been able to develop the service alongside the community, responding to increasing demand and providing better connections with the wider local bus network.
For Grant Palmer, the award demonstrates what can be achieved when bus operators, local authorities and developers work together to create high-quality public transport that people genuinely want to use.