20 Votran Drivers Earn Safe Driving Awards

Written by Kristen Schmutz

Belden Communications News

The definition of a good transit driver is courteous, professional, attentive, and above all, safe.

The National Safety Council (NSC) presents awards of honor each year to transit drivers across the county, the criteria include a minimum of 15 years or 250,000 consecutive miles driven without a preventable collision.

According to a release, Votran, Volusia County’s Public Transit System, didn’t just have one award recipient. Votran had 20 drivers that earned the NSC Award of Honor. A large number of award recipients was even more impressive given the additional considerations and responsibilities of serving the riding public in the age of COVID-19.

“Having this many award recipients is indicative of how many excellent employees we have,” said Elizabeth Suchsland, Votran’s assistant general manager of operations and maintenance. “Even with all that’s going on, our drivers are out there providing not only a safer health environment but also a safe physical experience riding public transit with Votran. These awards were extremely well-deserved.”

A non-profit safety advocacy organization, the National Safety Council divides its awards into 10 geographical regions. Votran drivers compete in the NSC’s South Atlantic Region, which encompasses Florida, Delaware, Georgia, Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia. Of the 20 Votran drivers who earned the recognition, 17 drive fix routes and three provide paratransit service. The 20 honorees are as follows:

Davidson Abraham

Brenda Daughtry

Richard Delpezzo

Maria Dupree

Nate Flynt

David Forbes

Carl Forster

Mitchell Franklin

Teddy Glenn

Bernard Huggins

Janet Kisner

Betty Kennedy Lowe

Tracey McClary

Jimmy Molina

Adriano Pagan

Thomas Vaughan

Evett “Doc” Wilson

Paratransit

BJ Crooms

Dottie Higgins

Clayton Stanley

Earning recognition from the National Safety Council is nothing new for Votran drivers, with Bernard Huggins and Wilson being past recipients.