JUDGING PANEL

Alison Irvine
Chief Executive, Transport Scotland
Chair of the Scottish Transport Awards Judging Panel

Alison has held various policy and delivery posts across the Scottish Government latterly leading the Cabinet, Parliament and Governance Division in Scottish Government covering all legislation and parliament business, the running of Cabinet as well as Protocol and Honours.

Having first joined Transport Scotland in 2008 she was Director of Transport Strategy and Analysis and was responsible for the development of the new National Transport Strategy, the transport aspects of the Climate Change Plan and setting the investment priorities for transport across Scotland through the second Strategic Transport Projects Review. Her remit also included responsibility for supporting ministers through the transport response to Covid19, EU Exit as well as the development of business cases and post opening evaluation for Scottish Minister's trunk road and rail investment programmes.

Prior to joining Transport Scotland Alison spent eighteen years working in the consultancy sector as a transport planner. She is a graduate from the University of Strathclyde and a Chartered Civil Engineer

Professor Iain Docherty
Dean, Institute for Advanced Studies
University of Stirling

Iain's research and teaching addresses the interconnecting issues of public administration, institutional change and city and regional competitiveness, with particular emphasis on the structures and processes of local and regional governance, policies for delivering improved economic performance and environmental sustainability, and the development and implementation of strategic planning and transport policies.

He has worked with and advised a range of private sector, governmental and other organisations including governments and public agencies in the UK, US, Australia, Canada, The Netherlands and Sweden, and the OECD.

In 2015 he was appointed by the ESRC and Innovate UK as one of five Thought Leaders working to integrate scientific innovation and social science research across the UK, and subsequently as one of the Co-Investigators and Infrastructure Theme Lead of the £1.2m ESRC Productivity Insights Network bringing together leading social science academics to help address the UK economy's resilient productivity gap. He is currently one of three senior researchers leading the UK Research and Innovation-funded project on the transport and mobility implications of the COVID-19 pandemic, and in 2021 was appointed as a Director of the National Transport Authority in Ireland.

Dr George Hazel OBE
Director
George Hazel Consultancy

Dr Hazel is a Director of the George Hazel Consultancy, an Adjunct Professor at Queensland University of Technology and Chair of the Advisory Panel for the Transport Research Institute, Edinburgh Napier University.

He was a member of the UK Secretary of State for Transport’s Steering Group for National Road User Charging, chair of the World Roads Congress C10 Committee, researching urban areas and transport, chair of the Scottish Public Policy Unit’s Transport Commission and Chair of Transport 2000’s Forum on Revitalising Communities on Main Roads. In January 2005 he was awarded the OBE for services to transport. He is an expert on towns and city regions and has written a book on Making Cities Work, published by Wiley.

Previously he was Professor of Transport Policy at the Centre for Transport Policy where he looked after the consultancy business. From 1996 to 1999 he was Director of City Development for the City of Edinburgh Council responsible for planning, economic development, transportation and property.

Bettina Sizeland
Director of Bus, Accessibility and Active Travel
Transport Scotland

As Director for BAAT, I oversee the delivery of an ambitious policy agenda, working with delivery partners to improve sustainable, accessible transport options and get the travelling public back to buses, walking, cycling and wheeling. My Directorate also operates concessionary travel schemes for disabled, older and young people and we're working with operators to ensure all journeys on Scotland's bus, rail, ferry, subway and tram networks can be ticketed or paid for using smart technologies.

Closer to home, Bettina has been part of projects such as Edinburgh's Usher Hall and Kings theatre refurbishment, Wester Hailes master planning, Edinburgh City Centre redevelopment, NHS asset management and eHealth development.

Robert Jack
Managing Editor
Passenger Transport

Robert has worked as a journalist, editor and publisher in the passenger transport sector for 25 years. He is Managing Editor and Publisher of Passenger Transport, which he co-founded in 2011 to provide this vital sector with a first-class source of news, analysis and comment.

Paul White
Director
CPT Scotland

Paul is the Director of CPT Scotland, the trade association for the bus and coach sectors, He is a non-councillor Board Member of SESTRAN and a previous Chair of the Scottish Transport Studies Group. Paul has worked in transport policy for almost 20 years across Scotland, Westminster and Brussels.

Hannah Ross
Chief Executive and Accountable Officer
Scottish Rail Holdings Limited

Hannah is a qualified solicitor with extensive experience in delivering major projects in commercial property, renewables and transport sectors. She worked for City of Edinburgh Council for 11 years and was the Senior Responsible Officer for Phase 2 of the Edinburgh Trams to Newhaven Project. Hannah then moved to work as Head of Major Projects and Commissioning at City Edinburgh Council before taking up the role of Chief Executive and Accountable Officer for Scottish Rail Holdings Limited.  Hannah is also the Chair of the Boards of ScotRail Trains and Caledonian Sleeper. She provides leadership and strategic direction to SRH and the subsidiaries and plays a key role in developing relationships at a senior level with both organisations and with Transport Scotland as our sponsor. She is responsible for ensuring that the Group delivers on all aspects of the Framework Agreement and the Grant Agreements held with Transport Scotland.