The market demand is changing, costs continue to rise, and operators are balancing new opportunities with ongoing operational pressures. A new industry survey from the National Coach Network offers a snapshot of how operators across the UK are feeling about the year ahead. The results paint a picture of cautious confidence: demand is strengthening, opportunities are emerging, but cost pressures and structural challenges continue to weigh heavily on the sector.
For operators across the UK, the findings reinforce many of the conversations already happening within the industry.
One of the most encouraging signals from the survey is that operator confidence appears to be strengthening. A majority of respondents indicated they feel more positive about the year ahead, and many expect demand for coach and minibus services to continue growing.
That optimism reflects what many operators are already seeing in practice. Private hire work, tourism-related travel and contract services are gradually strengthening, helping fleets return to more consistent levels of activity.
While recovery has not been uniform across the sector, the direction of travel is clear: demand is returning, and operators are finding new ways to capture it.
The survey also highlights how central private hire remains to the industry’s future.
Many operators identified private hire as the biggest opportunity for growth, alongside educational transport and work sourced through booking platforms or brokers.
This reflects the increasingly diverse ways that operators are generating business today. Digital platforms, partnership networks and collaborative booking systems are becoming an important part of how operators fill vehicles and manage demand.
For many fleets, these additional channels complement traditional direct bookings and long-standing customer relationships.
The survey shows encouraging signs around demand, but also reinforces one of the sector’s biggest ongoing challenges: rising operating costs.
Insurance, maintenance, wages and general inflation continue to affect operator margins. For many businesses, maintaining profitability means carefully balancing pricing with competitiveness in a busy marketplace.
This pressure is particularly visible among smaller operators, who often have less flexibility when absorbing sudden increases in operating costs.
It is a reminder that while demand may be recovering, the financial environment remains complex.
If the driver shortage is systemic, PSVAR is immediate. Driver recruitment also remains an important issue for the industry.
Route One’s reporting throughout 2025 captured the sector’s anxiety, noting the lack of clarity from the Department for Transport and the absence of a formal response to the 2023 call for evidence. Operators are investing heavily to meet a deadline while still desperately seeking clarity on whether the regulatory framework remains proportionate and fit for purpose.
Although shortages have eased compared with previous years, many operators still report difficulties attracting and retaining qualified drivers. For larger fleets in particular, recruitment can be a limiting factor when you want to expand operations or take on more work.
Long-term solutions will likely depend on strengthening training pathways, improving industry visibility and continuing to attract new entrants into the profession.
EVM has sought to alleviate the strain of driver recruitment by launching smaller passenger vehicles within the minibus sector. The LuxuryCab is an 8-seater minibus that offers spacious, luxurious transport for large families and smaller groups. The Tribus diesel and eSprinter is an accessible minibus with PLS/wheelchair lift, ideal for speedy seating reconfigurations between trips. Both the LuxuryCab and Tribus models can be driven on a standard car licence, which is perfect when you don’t have drivers with a D1 Licence. Learn more about licence requirements here.
Whilst these are not vehicles that sit inside the coach industry, they are options for operators to investigate for smaller group transport and great additions for cross-industry operations.
The survey has demonstrated that the coach sector remains resilient. Operators are identifying opportunities, adapting to changes in demand and continuing to invest where it makes sense. At the same time, rising costs and workforce pressures are an ongoing concern.
For businesses across the sector, the road ahead will likely involve balancing these opportunities and pressures carefully. But also making the most of available grants and funding, and considering used stock, and distributors with good after-sales care (like EVM).
If there is one thing the survey reinforces, it is that the coach industry has always been adaptable — and that adaptability remains one of its greatest strengths.
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