Highly commended for Gus the bus driver at top awards

The First Wessex driver was nominated in the National Transport Awards due to the fact he goes the extra mile to help customers.

Customers describe him as a 'legend' and the 'king of customer service'.

Mr Iandi was 'highly commended' in the Frontline Employee of the Year category and received a certificate and a bottle of champagne as his prize.

Awards were handed out at the Westminster Park Plaza in London last night. Hosted by comedian and impressionist Rory Bremner, the awards attracted more than 800 senior transport professionals to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the event including Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin MP who gave the keynote address.

The nomination for Gus stated: “His sunny disposition, friendliness and willingness to go that extra mile for customers is constantly recognised and has resulted in a number of plaudits from passengers and the wider local community."

General Manager, First Wessex, Simon Newport said: "We are extremely proud of Gus reaching the final of this prestigious award. Being highly commended is a fantastic achievement .

"We would like to thank all our customers who have sent their best wishes to him via social media.

"Rest assured, we shall be looking to nominate Gus and indeed, some of our other drivers for this award next year."

News of Mr Iandi's nomination earlier this year prompted a huge wave of support on social media.

First Wessex announced the news of the nomination on its Facebook page, and later included a link to the subsequent Dorset Echo story.

The company said the reaction to the Facebook announcement had been 'phenomenal' with a huge amount of people 'liking' the post, commenting and sharing it with their friends within a few hours of if going online.

It is the second time father-of-five Mr Iandi, 60, has been nominated for a top industry award.

He was highly commended by judges for the Chris Moyes Memorial Award for the Top National Bus Driver in the 2013 UK Bus Awards.