Trends in passenger choice when reserving seats for travel with National Express have revealed the UK public love the opportunity to be a backseat driver.

The UK’s largest coach operator has seen hundreds of thousands of passengers select to reserve a specific seat in the first five rows of the coach for an additional £2 since the optional extra was introduced in 2017 - and expert insight into the booking patterns has identified some interesting findings.

On analysing the data, psychologist Denise Taylor explains: “We like to have choices in life. While a seat is already guaranteed when booking with the coach, reserving a specific seat on a journey gives us extra control and the certainty our brain craves.”

Nearly a quarter (24%) of bookings were made by ‘back seat drivers’ who selected either of the two seats directly behind the driver: “These travellers want to see things from a driver’s point of view and may picture themselves at the steering wheel. They like to feel involved in the journey and by sitting directly behind the driver are able to get a real sense of being part of the action.”

Over half (54%) of passengers were ‘daydreamers’ who chose to reserve window seats: “These travellers tend to be open to new experiences and want the view to help feed their imagination. They can also use the space to relax and create a nest where they won’t be disturbed while they immerse themselves in their thoughts.”  

This is in contrast to the 33%  of ‘hurriers’ who chose aisle seats in the first three rows: “These individuals are focused on the end point of the journey and are keen to get to their destination. They want to be one of the first off the coach and are more likely to be impatient so try to minimise the possibility of being slowed down by waiting behind other passengers.”

John Boughton, commercial director for National Express coach, comments: “A major benefit of coach travel has always been the guarantee of a seat so passengers never experience overcrowding or unexpectedly find themselves standing for a long journey.

“We’re always looking for ways to add to this experience and last year we trialled the option for passengers to reserve a specific seat when booking on selected routes. It proved extremely popular and is now available on over half of our network, including all routes in to and out of London..

“In response to further customer demand, we’re now also offering the add-on to reserve seats with extra legroom and premium seating with a table on selected routes. It will be interesting to see how customers respond to these options and any other trends in behaviour they might reveal.”

The top ten most popular routes for reserving specific seats are:

Cardiff<>London

Bournemouth<>London

Manchester<>London

Nottingham<>London

Southampton<>London

Birmingham<>London

Leeds<>London

Newport (S.Wales)<>London

Leicester<>London

Cheltenham<>London

Travel with National Express offers great value with thousands of tickets for £5 or less (plus booking fee) and benefits including power sockets, leather seats, air conditioning, a free entertainment app and power sockets.

For more information and to find the best value fares visit www.nationalexpress.com or call 0871 7818181.