Employee Shuttle Service

Routes, drivers, app and support - an employee shuttle under one contract.

An employee shuttle service from RideTandem is a fully managed workplace bus: route design, vehicles, DBS-checked drivers, a 9-language Rider App, live tracking, 24/7 support and GHG Protocol-aligned emissions reporting, all under one contract. One bus typically replaces around 23 commuter cars a day, covers 24/7 shift patterns, and flexes vehicle size to actual bookings.

4-seat taxis to 80-seat coaches 9-language Rider App 24/7 live ops support DBS-checked, PSV-licensed

The case for a shuttle

One managed bus changes the maths for staff, cost and carbon.

23
single-occupancy cars taken off the road, per shuttle bus
32,000+
car journeys replaced for a single food manufacturer
2 Sisters Food Group client data
210t
of CO₂ offset in 12 months by one client
RideTandem client data
£3,400+
a year to run a car, rising to £5,000 - a cost a shuttle removes
RAC Foundation / AA, 2025 - source to confirm

Definition

What is an employee shuttle service?

An employee shuttle service is a dedicated bus that moves workers between their homes, a transport hub or accommodation and their workplace - operating outside public timetables and tailored to the employer's shift pattern. UK employers use shuttles to cut absenteeism, hit emissions targets and fill roles in locations the public network doesn't reach.

A fully managed shuttle is more than vehicle hire. It bundles the route design, the right-sized fleet, vetted drivers, the rider app, live operations and the reporting into one contract - so the employer gets transport that works, without running a transport operation.

  • Shift patterns public transport can't reach. 04:00 starts and night-shift finishes fall outside every bus and rail timetable. DfT National Travel Survey, 2024
  • A large slice of the workforce has no car. 22% of English households have no car, rising to 50% of the lowest income quintile - exactly the workers employers need to recruit. DfT NTS 2024 / Joseph Rowntree Foundation
  • Parking is increasingly capped. Modern planning consents limit on-site parking, squeezing single-occupancy commuting. RTPI / local plan data, 2024 - source to confirm
  • Commuting emissions now have to be reported. Scope 3 Category 7 is material for SECR and CSRD filers, and a shuttle is one of the few levers that moves it. GHG Protocol + UK SECR
A professional shuttle driver welcoming passengers aboard a RideTandem bus
A shuttle passenger booking a seat in the RideTandem Rider App

What it includes

What should a fully managed shuttle include?

Six things separate a managed service from simply chartering a coach.

  • Route & timetable designMapped to your shift pattern from worker home postcodes.
  • Right-sized vehiclesFrom 4-seater taxis to 80-seater coaches, swapped as demand changes.
  • DBS + PSV-licensed driversA vetted operator network, with audit evidence on demand.
  • 9-language Rider AppQR tickets, live tracking and journey alerts in the rider's language.
  • 24/7 live ops supportDrivers, riders and your coordinator covered around the clock.
  • Scope 3 + usage dataLive in the Client Hub and export-ready for your reporting.

How it works

How a RideTandem shuttle service gets launched.

From first brief to first journey, we handle the route design, the operator and the rollout - you approve, we run it.

A RideTandem shuttle coach ready to collect workers for a shift
  1. 1

    Demand survey

    We map worker home postcodes against your shift pattern to find where the demand really is.

  2. 2

    Route & operator match

    The route is designed, tendered through our vetted operator network, and the vehicle sized to the bookings.

  3. 3

    Launch & rollout

    We onboard riders in nine languages and issue QR tickets - the rollout is handled by our team, not yours.

  4. 4

    Run & optimise

    24/7 live ops, plus monthly utilisation and Scope 3 reports straight to your Client Hub.

Comparison

How does a managed shuttle compare to the alternatives?

Capability RideTandem Coach hire Car allowance PT subsidy Source / basis
Fully managedYesVehicle onlyNoNoRideTandem product
Flexes to demandYesNoN/AN/AMonthly right-sizing
Auditable Scope 3 dataYesNoSurvey onlySurvey onlyGHG Protocol Cat 7
Works for 04:00 shiftsYesLimitedYesNoDfT bus timetables
Cars off the road per day~23 per bus~23 per bus00DfT occupancy benchmark

We have used RideTandem exclusively for several years now. Their model and service is second to none. Their flexibility and speed in executing a solution, irrespective of location, has been truly outstanding.

Andy Sissons
Executive Director, Job & Talent
See more client results
Single-occupancy cars replaced per bus
23per shift
Vehicle range, sized to demand
4-80seats
Live operations support
24/7cover

FAQ

Employee shuttle service, frequently asked questions

Typically 4-6 weeks from signed contract to first journey for a single-site service. Demand mapping is the longest step; once postcodes are in, route design and operator matching move quickly.

Anything from 4-seater taxis to 80-seater coaches. We right-size the vehicle to actual bookings - small buses when demand is light, bigger ones as it scales - so you pay for what you use.

Drivers are employed by our vetted operator network. They are all PSV-licensed, DBS-checked and performance-managed by RideTandem, and we can supply compliance evidence for your audit pack on request.

Our 24/7 support team works with the operator to source a replacement vehicle or alternative transport so passengers still reach site. Every incident is logged and reviewed.

Yes. Passengers can book and pay directly in the app - a common model for agency workers and subsidised corporate schemes. Payments are always voluntary and never deducted from wages.

Get a shuttle quote in days, not weeks.

Free site assessment and route design. Tell us your site, shift patterns and headcount, and we'll come back with a route and a price.

Get a free route assessment Back to What We Do
Under a week to quote · No-obligation · UK-wide coverage