Snow such thing as untweeted surfaces: How EYMS are using Twitter to keep us moving

SHE'S been praised for keeping Hull on the move as the bad weather took hold.

Today, the Mail unveils the mystery tweeter from bus firm East Yorkshire Motor Services (EYMS) as Claire Robinson.

Claire, 29, was filing minute-by-minute updates on the social network site when the weather took a turn for the worse and buses battled through the snow and freezing temperatures.

Working long hours, marketing manager Claire was driven by the knowledge she was helping passengers who could have been stuck in East Yorkshire's rural heartland.

She said: "The snow really affected those in rural areas.

"I was thinking about the people standing at bus stops in Aldbrough or Skipsea, not knowing what was going on.

"So many people have smartphones now and can find out information from anywhere."

Blizzards and freezing temperatures caused chaos on the region's roads at the start of the week, with many routes impassable and traffic grinding to a halt in Hull city centre at the height of rush hour.

While the main roads were well gritted, smaller B-roads were left untreated which meant bus services were disrupted.

But Claire was on hand to warn passengers in real time.

She said: "Twitter has become a lot more popular recently.

"This is something we have been looking to develop for a while now. It is a great way to get through to customers.

"More and more people have been coming to our website so this was the next step."

The hard work by Claire has been paying off, with more people following EYMS on the social networking service.

She said: "Since Monday, we have got an extra 360 followers.

"Hopefully, it will continue to grow. We now have 2,342 followers. But others are retweeting so we are reaching even more people.

"On an average day, we may tweet ten times but we have tweeted hundreds of times this week.

"Twitter also allows passengers to talk to each other and share information.

"Those with smartphones can also tell others who maybe waiting at the same bus stop what is happening."

Claire gets her information from the company's radio operators and supervisors who email her the latest information.

But the twitter feed is pretty much a one person operation.

Claire said: "It's really just me who looks after Twitter although people will fill in when I'm at meetings.

"The past few days have been non-stop. The first thing I do when I get up is check the information and then go on to Twitter.

"I'll be on the bus home and I'll still be tweeting."

While the wintry weather has eased off for now, the snow is set to return at the weekend and icy condition remain a problem.

Claire said: "It looks like it could be a long weekend, I was really hoping the snow would fall just during the week.

"But at least I know we will be provided vital information for people.

"There will be some untreated roads which means we won't be able to serve some areas and we need to let people know.

"It may be a case of just walking 100 yards to the main road where they might be able to get a bus."

Despite the long hours, Claire believes what she is doing, alongside her other responsibilities as marketing manager, is worthwhile.

She said: "I have done so much typing over the past few days but I know that what I have been tweeting has really been helping lots of people."

• Get the latest updates from EYMS on Twitter @EYBuses

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