Intercity buses will bring thousands of people home for the Thanksgiving holiday, as they always do. But this year’s travelers can’t be blamed if they aren’t overflowing with gratitude about their experience at the bus stop.
The past few months have been tough for many passengers using bus stations and curbside spots across the country. Amid a worsening bus station crisis, some city officials have become downright hostile to the key service because of perceptions that it causes theft, loitering and loss of neighborhood aesthetics. While dozens of airport terminal improvements are providing new conveniences for flyers, and as new federal dollars flow for train upgrades, more and more riders of intercity buses are, quite literally, being left out in the cold.
While dozens of airport terminal improvements are providing new conveniences for flyers, more and more riders of intercity buses are, quite literally, being left out in the cold.
The problem has been several years in the making. On Greyhound, the bus travel giant that reaches more U.S. cities than any other line, stations with spacious and climate-controlled waiting rooms have been shuttered in Charlottesville, Virginia, Cincinnati and Columbus, Ohio; Erie and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Knoxville, Tennessee; Louisville, Kentucky; Portland, Oregon, and Tampa, Florida. This has forced lines to move to curbside spots or more remote locations separated from downtown. Greyhound and its partners have suspended service entirely from two state capitals, Jackson, Mississippi, and Little Rock, Arkansas, because of their inability to find workable stations. Concern is high that Greyhound stations in Chicago; Charlotte, North Carolina; Cleveland; Dallas, and Kansas City, Missouri, could be the next to go.
This crisis is unfolding as intercity bus lines more broadly seem to be enjoying a post-pandemic bounce. FlixBus, Greyhound, Jefferson Lines, Megabus, Peter Pan, Trailways and other lines are adding back service,…
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