With more than 30 years of services under his belt, Bill Purcell is hanging up his keys.

Many school children in the Katikati area will know Bill as a bus driver who did the school runs.

Bill says that his time as a school bus driver over the years were in general, actually good.

'I enjoyed the school bus run because I enjoy kids.”

Bill has many stories of his time as a bus driver, and loves the fact that he was able to watch people grow throughout their schooling years and beyond.

'There is a lady in town that still addresses me as Mr Purcell, which she learnt on the bus. Every time I go into the store that's what I greeted with. I say you know my name is Bill, ‘No I've always known you as Mr Purcell'.”

'She was one of the ones that started school while I was driving the school bus, I virtually saw her go through her schooling and finish school, and that is a fair length of time straight away.”

Bill also says the manners from passengers have gone out the door completely.

'They get something into their head that they are just better and you're just a bus driver. You're just an old man, and that view is quite popular now. That was the only thing I didn't like about it.”

Now Bill has retired, he plans on taking a few trips.

'I have a campervan and I've got quite a few friends that have moved away from the area that I would like to catch up with.”

All in all, Bill says that he enjoyed his time as a bus driver.

'It was good fun, a good job. I've never regretted it, put it that way.”