19/07/2001

Stagecoach Group today announces the appointment of Randall E West as President and Chief Executive Officer for its Coach USA subsidiary. Mr West, who takes over as CEO on September 1, will immediately begin a familiarisation programme at Coach USA. He will report direct to Stagecoach Group Chief Executive Keith Cochrane. Frank Gallagher becomes non-executive chairman of Coach USA from September 1.

Welcoming the appointment, Keith Cochrane said: "Randy West has a distinguished career in transportation in North America, and I am delighted that he has accepted the challenge of CEO for Coach USA. He has worked at both Allied and Ryder where he grew the businesses and had the reputation of being extremely operational, a hands-on team builder, and firmly focussed on growth. I am certain he will make a significant contribution to the development of Coach USA, and we all look forward to working with him."

Randall E West, aged 51, has worked all his life in the American road transportation industry. In the past few years, he was president and chief operating officer at Allied Group, a $1.3 billion multinational transportation and logistics company with more than 125 operating locations across North America, Brazil and the UK. He joined Allied after more than a decade with Ryder System, the world's largest ground transportation and logistics company, where he expanded Ryder International in Miami, and became president of Ryder Automotive Carrier Services in Detroit. He is married, with one daughter.