A trend is emerging in intercity travel in an era of pilot shortages and high fuel prices: intercity buses are replacing flights for shorter regional trips.

“U.S. airlines are beginning to contract with bus companies to run on-the-ground ‘flights’ between nearby cities,” according to an article by Kea Willson for Streetsblog USA. The trend is providing talking points for advocates to suggest that “the intercity bus should no longer be ignored in the conversation about curbing car and plane dependency.”
An article by Edward Russell for Airline Weekly broke the news that American Airlines had contracted with Landline to connect American’s Philadelphia hub to Lehigh Valley airport near Allentown, Pennsylvania and the airport in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The intercity bus service will commence on June 3.
“The partnership is similar to ones Landline has with Sun Country Airlines in Minneapolis-St. Paul and United Airlines in Denver,” according to Russell.
Wilson provides more on the advocacy angle of the news:
Some sustainable transportation advocates praised the move as a common-sense way to axe emissions from short-haul flights and connect isolated communities with long-distance air travel that at least gets cars off the interstate. But others saw the move as an indicator of America’s under-investment in rail — or a cheap marketing gimmick aimed at bait-and-switching passengers who would never be caught dead on any shared mode, unless it happens to operate at cruising altitude.
Wilson provides a lot more detail and context about intercity travel in the United States in the source article below.
FULL STORY: Can ‘Buses-As-Flights’ Get Americans Out of Cars — And Planes?

Rethinking Redlining
For decades we have blamed 100-year-old maps for the patterns of spatial racial inequity that persist in American cities today. An esteemed researcher says: we’ve got it all wrong.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

California High-Speed Rail's Plan to Right Itself
The railroad's new CEO thinks he can get the project back on track. The stars will need to align this summer.

Raleigh Launches Greenway Food Truck Pilot to Enhance Park Experiences
Raleigh’s new Greenway Food Truck Pilot Program brings local food vendors to popular greenway locations to enhance park experiences, support small businesses, and encourage community use of public spaces.

‘Displaced By Design:’ Report Spotlights Gentrification in Black Neighborhoods
A new report finds that roughly 15 percent of U.S. neighborhoods have been impacted by housing cost increases and displacement.

Nevada and Utah Groups Oppose Public Land Sell-Off Plan
A set of last-minute amendments to the budget reconciliation bill open up over half a million acres of federally managed land to sales.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
City of Clovis
City of Moorpark
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
Transportation Research & Education Center (TREC) at Portland State University
Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions