Passengers continue to rely on intercity bus lines, even as cities shutter bus terminals and bus companies restructure to avoid financial failure.
Despite operators’ financial struggles and the closure of dozens of bus terminals around the country, intercity bus ridership is growing in the United States, prompting bus companies to expand their fleets, reveals a report from the Chaddick Institute. “Greyhound acquired 60 motor coaches last year; Trailways, 30; and Peter Pan, 15. The Motorcoach Builders Survey for the third quarter of 2024 saw sales of new coaches up over 15% from the same period in the previous year.”
According to a Smart Cities Dive piece by Dan Zukowski, intercity buses provided almost 50 million riders in 2023, and ridership could grow by as much as 4 percent this year — higher than growth in air travel. Colorado’s Bustang line carried almost 280,000 riders in 2023. Other state-supported bus services are available in North Carolina, Virginia, and Washington,and Maine launched a new intercity service last year.
As Zukowski notes, “State services like these are made possible by the Federal Transit Administration’s formula grants for rural areas program, also known as Section 5311.”
However, the report warns that closures of terminals have slowed ridership recovery in rural and secondary routes, and some urban bus terminals are on the chopping block or have already closed down.
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