A prolific writer of articles and visible on social media, Philip Gerhardt is this week’s dining companion on ‘Lunch with Leon’.

Currently General Manager - Route Performance at Arriva London, Philip is ‘destined for great things’ says Leon Daniels, who charts Philip’s rise through the industry since joining as a trainee 12 years ago.

In a conversation that the “younger generation would do well to hear,” reckons Leon, they chat about the transformation of the transport industry and new technologies – a real passion for Philip.

He explains why the newly-announced National Bus Strategy “opens so many doors” as he talks with passion about transport and its future.

“We have a responsibility to take people in the industry on the journey with us” says Philip as he explains how data “can really change how we look at the world” and deliver even better performance.

Whether demand-responsive travel (DRT) will ever become mainstream is mulled over, while Philip reveals how he spent his spare time in lockdown trying to break travel apps.

“We’re on the cusp of greatness in transport,” he adds as the conversation moves onto the possibilities of dynamic scheduling using real-time data. Will this, they ponder, lead to the possibility of live automated bus rescheduling on hi-frequency services?

Before wrapping up, they offer advice for young people who are thinking of joining the transport industry. What would Philip say to someone who is weighing up, for example, whether to go into retail, computer games, banking or something else? 

Describing his experiences, Philip concludes by talking about how to make transport attractive to young people as a career choice.