Megabus cancelled Detroit-Cleveland-Pittsburgh route

[stasu1213]

Looks like Snyder Orr and the car ass kissing corporation won another one

[dtowncitylover]

The removal of the Detroit-Pittsburgh service seems more of an indication of the partial failure of the Pittsburgh hub. The Wikipedia article on Megabus notes that 3 of the 7 original Pittsburgh routes were dropped in 2012. The removal of those routes [[and service cutbacks) made it impossible to connect in Pittsburgh without staying there overnight.

This is a good point. Along the same lines, one can't, through Megabus, buy direct tickets. If I wanted to go to Minneapolis, I would have to buy a ticket to Chicago and then a ticket to Minneapolis, the same with the way back. It would be nice if I could plug in Detroit to MSP and it would automatically transfer me through Chicago. I tried to set up a trip to Harrisburg, PA to see family and couldn't because the transfer time in Pittsburgh was overnight!

[Scottathew]

I love flying but it has to be justified. Going through security for a 60-90 minutes flight that may be delayed and paying "$200" for it is not justifiable.

I actually love road tripping, but that assumes there's more people with me. If it's just me paying for gas, I'd rather take a bus or train.

Had to check a flight to JFK...$298 with a layover in Charlotte. Direct to LaGuardia was $329. Boston was $203 but with a layover in Philly, direct was $303. Dulles was $314, direct and up. I would say the average of all the flights I'm looking at is between $350-500. Flying, even close, is not cheap anymore.

I'm with you dtcl!

We've got my wife and a 2 and 4 year old and driving is almost always preferable to flying. We're leaving for Chattanooga on Monday morning. We'll be piling in the mini-van and saving a ton of money over flying. Flying isn't even that much faster because of the security check-in times.

I plan on taking a train to Chicago when my kids get a little older, I think it would be fun to ride that way.

[DetroiterOnTheWestCoast]

How is flying is comparable to a $1-20 bus ride?

. It's not. But what do people in Birmingham know about taking a bus? Just book a plane ticket, and why not first class while you're at it?

[SDCC]

I’m traveling to Detroit from San Diego…

Greyhound is a 54 hour ride, 3 transfers, 30 stops, $216.00 – web price only, standard price is $255.00

Amtrak – forget about it – 3 transfers, 52 hours, $283.00, oh, and no checked baggage please

Booked an airline ticket – via cheapOair.com - $280.00, one transfer, one hour between flights

All prices quoted are one way

[Spartan]

I’m traveling to Detroit from San Diego…

Greyhound is a 54 hour ride, 3 transfers, 30 stops, $216.00 – web price only, standard price is $255.00

Amtrak – forget about it – 3 transfers, 52 hours, $283.00, oh, and no checked baggage please

Booked an airline ticket – via cheapOair.com - $280.00, one transfer, one hour between flights

All prices quoted are one way

This is relevant why? Everyone knows airplanes are the best and most efficient way to travel cross country...

[motz]

If you don't want to drive, then why not fly? Flights to major airports in the Northeast are usually under $200.

If you don't have a car, you can rent one for $20 a day, and a tank of gas will take you to the Clevelands and Pittsburghs of the world.

Some of us don't have the money for a flight from Detroit to, say, New York. Some of us don't want to put a ton of miles on our car driving to Cleveland or Pittsburgh. Some of us would prefer to take a MegaBus to some of these areas and have a friend pick us up. Unfortunately, you demonstrate your disconnect with the reality of others by saying "Just rent a car for $20/day" [[It's not that cheap) or "Just take a plane" [[I don't have $200 to blow on a flight). MegaBus was aimed at those of us who want to travel, but find the conventional means of travel to be cost prohibitive.

Edit - Basically makes going to NYC or Pittsburgh much, much less likely for me these days, which upsets me a little bit. I have a very close friend in Pittsburgh, and another good friend moving back to NYC this summer, and I would really love to visit both, but...

[Spartan]

Edit - Basically makes going to NYC or Pittsburgh much, much less likely for me these days, which upsets me a little bit. I have a very close friend in Pittsburgh, and another good friend moving back to NYC this summer, and I would really love to visit both, but...

Check out flights on Frontier to ILG [[Wilmington, DE), then take the Megabus from Philly or Newark to NYC. If you time things right you can get to NY for under $100. Maybe still too much, but a way to get to NYC much cheaper!

[Bham1982]

How is flying is comparable to a $1-20 bus ride?

There is no such bus ride. Greyhound is around $100 to the East Coast.

Obviously you will pay a little more to fly to NYC or DC compared to the bus, but there are massive savings in time.

For closer trips [[to places like Pittsburgh and Cleveland) all you need is a tank of gas. A bus will never compete with this [[as we just witnessed).

[Bham1982]

WHO rents a car for $20 a day? When I was in Detroit last year, the cheapest rental was $61 a day.
Please let me know the source for cheap rentals.

Are you renting high end cars or something?

I have never even paid $30 a day for a car rental. In California I paid something like like $12/day.

Go to carrentals.com.Tons of options in the $20 range.

[Bham1982]

Some of us don't have the money for a flight from Detroit to, say, New York. Some of us don't want to put a ton of miles on our car driving to Cleveland or Pittsburgh. Some of us would prefer to take a MegaBus to some of these areas and have a friend pick us up.

We already know none of this is true. Megabus cancelled their skeletal service for lack of demand.

And again, how is renting a car more expensive? I don't get it. If you can't swing $150 for a flight or $20 a day for a car rental, and the only way you could possibly travel was relying on a $1 Megabus, then what's the point of travel in the first place?

[dtowncitylover]

There is no such bus ride. Greyhound is around $100 to the East Coast.

Obviously you will pay a little more to fly to NYC or DC compared to the bus, but there are massive savings in time.

For closer trips [[to places like Pittsburgh and Cleveland) all you need is a tank of gas. A bus will never compete with this [[as we just witnessed).

Do relize how insufferable you sound?

1) The point of travel is to have fun. Shelling out hundreds of dollars is not fun. I want to keep costs low.

2) Megabus was that ride.

3) Going from a $40 RT fare through Megabus to ~$300 plane ticket is not a "little more" to most people.

4) It's not just a tank of gas. It's 1 tank there. 1 tank back and 1 tank to refill for the workweek. 3 tanks of gas, in a short period that most people don't want to do.

I think the lack of demand came from Megabus not having a decent timetable to get people in Detroit to NY, Philly, or DC by the evening. I shouldn't have to spend 6 hrs overnight or 4 hrs in the day without a decent shelter to wait in in Pittsburgh just to transfer.

Most of the time, I can make the time to travel. I cannot afford to dry up my bank account just for travel. You wanna take a plane and rent a car, go right ahead, but some of us don't have that luxury.

[motz]

We already know none of this is true. Megabus cancelled their skeletal service for lack of demand.

And again, how is renting a car more expensive? I don't get it. If you can't swing $150 for a flight or $20 a day for a car rental, and the only way you could possibly travel was relying on a $1 Megabus, then what's the point of travel in the first place?

Oh cool, the "Well if you can't afford $150, why are you even travelling? Poor people don't deserve to travel" argument. We don't really have any low-cost options beyond Megabus if your entire idea is to not drive. I don't want to take my car, or any car rental or not, when I travel to a place. Part of the idea, at least for myself, of travelling is leaving behind certain responsibilities I find annoying [[a car is a fine example). But whatever, I will just stay at home every day because us on the lower end of the wage scale don't deserve to travel

[Bham1982]

$20 sounds pretty low to me. If you truly can't afford $20, and also can't afford Greyhound, you are going to be dining at the local Pittsburgh soup kitchen. Probably best to stay home if you are truly destitute.

Greyhound is $27. I don't see why that's an outrageous price.

[dtowncitylover]

1) The point of travel is to have fun. Shelling out hundreds of dollars is not fun. I want to keep costs low.

$20 sounds pretty low to me. If you truly can't afford $20, and also can't afford Greyhound, you are going to be dining at the local Pittsburgh soup kitchen. Probably best to stay home.

I changed it to insufferable because that word escaped me when I wrote the post and it is more appropriate. $20 for what? A car? That's $20 per day for a car plus gas. NO. For a Megabus ticket, yes!

Greyhound is still much more than Megabus. Look it up.

Like most people, I like to splurge when I'm on location traveling somewhere but like to keep transportation costs low. And obviously, money is not object for you, that's great.

[Bham1982]

I
Like most people, I like to splurge when I'm on location traveling somewhere but like to keep transportation costs low. And obviously, money is not object for you, that's great.

Because I think a $27 bus ticket isn't outrageous, then "money isn't an object for me"? Alrighty, then...

Greyhound is unionized. Their gas and insurance is expensive. Federal interstate safety regulations are cumbersome. How much lower to do you need bus fares to fall so you can take your dream vacation to Pittsburgh?

Maybe if they broke the union, evaded safety rules and hired a bunch of undocumented immigrants from Honduras and paid them under the table, you could save $5 or $10. Would that save your vacation from disaster?

[dtowncitylover]

Because I think a $27 bus ticket isn't outrageous, then "money isn't an object for me"? Alrighty, then...

Greyhound is unionized. Their gas and insurance is expensive. Federal interstate safety regulations are cumbersome. How much lower to do you need bus fares to fall so you can take your dream vacation to Pittsburgh?

Maybe if they broke the union, evaded safety rules and hired a bunch of undocumented immigrants from Honduras and paid them under the table, you could save $5 or $10. Would that save your vacation from disaster?

Well that escalted quickly. I've already taken my vacations to Pittsburgh thank you. It's a lovely town, I'd recommend it. I'm not saying planes, Greyhound, or car rentals are bad ways of travel, but when the cheapest way to travel is now gone it hinders some people's ability to travel more often and spend more money in other local economies.

A $27 bus ticket isn't outrageous, but that's not the cost of a Greyhound ticket to the east.

[Cliffy]

Some of us don't have the money for a flight from Detroit to, say, New York. Some of us don't want to put a ton of miles on our car driving to Cleveland or Pittsburgh. Some of us would prefer to take a MegaBus to some of these areas and have a friend pick us up. Unfortunately, you demonstrate your disconnect with the reality of others by saying "Just rent a car for $20/day" [[It's not that cheap) or "Just take a plane" [[I don't have $200 to blow on a flight). MegaBus was aimed at those of us who want to travel, but find the conventional means of travel to be cost prohibitive.

Edit - Basically makes going to NYC or Pittsburgh much, much less likely for me these days, which upsets me a little bit. I have a very close friend in Pittsburgh, and another good friend moving back to NYC this summer, and I would really love to visit both, but...

This is going to sound harsh but if you don't have the money to get a flight then you have no business taking trips. Stay home. My parents always taught me that. Nobody needs to go on a vacation.

[dtowncitylover]

This is going to sound harsh but if you don't have the money to get a flight then you have no business taking trips. Stay home. My parents always taught me that. Nobody needs to go on a vacation.

That must've been an unfortunate childhood. I mean if you're dead broke, then yeah traveling shouldn't be a high priority. But to say if you can't afford at least the price of a plane ticket then you shouldn't go anywhere is quite elitist. Everyone should be able travel and vacaiton from time to time.

Of course many people on Megabus weren't on vacation. I saw many young families, students going back to school, and I for one used it to go to Chicago for an interview.

[motz]

This is going to sound harsh but if you don't have the money to get a flight then you have no business taking trips. Stay home. My parents always taught me that. Nobody needs to go on a vacation.

It is pretty harsh, actually. People who are from lower income brackets, or people such as myself just starting out in a field, often times have fairly to very hectic lives. The ability to set aside, say, $20 a week to go on a trip while not breaking the bank is something lots of us do. When you take away low-cost options for travel, you're a) Making travel a middle-to-upper class only affair b) Taking away a very enjoyable, sometimes necessary option for relaxation for people. Saying "If you can't buy a plane ticket, don't travel" is the equivalent of saying "If you can't buy or lease a car, don't bother driving". Travel/vacations are a way for many people to get away from their stress, their worries, their troubles, etc. The ~free market~ should be able to recognize this and provide options while still being able to pull in some decent profits, but the free markets are about as broken as your "You shouldn't travel you stupid poor" argument.

[Cliffy]

That must've been an unfortunate childhood. I mean if you're dead broke, then yeah traveling shouldn't be a high priority. But to say if you can't afford at least the price of a plane ticket then you shouldn't go anywhere is quite elitist. Everyone should be able travel and vacaiton from time to time.

Of course many people on Megabus weren't on vacation. I saw many young families, students going back to school, and I for one used it to go to Chicago for an interview.

I don't think its elitist. Its just reality. I mean when I had no money, I didn't go on a vacation. Sometimes you have to set priorities in life in order to put some money on the side for a rainy day. I guess I was raised differently but then again money isn't a big concern for us now because we sacrificed. But a typical American in this country wants a new car, vacation, and other crap and thats why they are working until 80 years old. I'll get off my soap box or whatever box I'm standing on lol

[Bill Simpson]

I think it's because of the whole Tracy Morgan ordeal. The bus lines are shutting down because their drivers are too tired. When we have drone-like buses that don't require drivers, that will be great. No more waiting on the next bus.

[Hermod]

1) The point of travel is to have fun. Shelling out hundreds of dollars is not fun. I want to keep costs low.
2) Megabus was that ride.
3) Going from a $40 RT fare through Megabus to ~$300 plane ticket is not a "little more" to most people.
4) It's not just a tank of gas. It's 1 tank there. 1 tank back and 1 tank to refill for the workweek. 3 tanks of gas, in a short period that most people don't want to do.
I think the lack of demand came from Megabus not having a decent timetable to get people in Detroit to NY, Philly, or DC by the evening. I shouldn't have to spend 6 hrs overnight or 4 hrs in the day without a decent shelter to wait in in Pittsburgh just to transfer.

Most of the time, I can make the time to travel. I cannot afford to dry up my bank account just for travel. You wanna take a plane and rent a car, go right ahead, but some of us don't have that luxury.

Megabus was obviously not able to make a go of it on the fares they charged. They needed either more riders or higher fares.

[A2Mike]

Not only is long distance travel [[I'll arbitrarily define that as more than a five hour drive) problematic, but regional transit in SE Michigan is practically nonexistent. I'm retired, line in Ann Arbor and don't like driving but would enjoy visiting Detroit about once a month. Ideally that would mean getting into town in mid to late morning and returning in mid to late afternoon, allowing perhaps a trip to the DIA, lunch somwhere, or maybe a stop at John King's [[I won't even get into the subject of evening events such as opera or symphony). Presently there is no Megabus, a few Greyhound buses which are not well timed for day trips into town, and a couple of Amtrak trains, also poorly timed, and undependable as well, making any type of commuter travel, for work or pleasure, impossible. One has been hearing for years about an Ann Arbor-Detroit commuter train, but it always in the "future", and uses the same tracks which constantly delay the few Amtrak trains there are [[the first thing Amtrak should have done over forty years ago was get dedicated tracks but of course they did it backwards). Many years ago there were Budd rail diesel cars [[self powered passenger cars) in service from Jackson to Detroit, which would be cheaper to buy and run than full trains. Absent that, a truly well coordinated system of express buses, using existing freeways, might be viable and save on the infrastructure costs of trains, providing useful and dependable regional transit.

[MikeyinBrooklyn]

A2Mike, your post is just bubbling with truth. Aside from issues involving delays, Detroit-Ann Arbor rail [[through Amtrak) isn't frequent, reliable or cheap enough to be of significant value for commuters in the area. Without construction of a new, dedicated set of heavy rails or a light rail line, I don't think a non-Amtrak rail service could offer anything in the way of a fast, frequent, inexpensive rail trip between AA & Detroit. Even if such Magical Tracks were to just appear, I am still not convinced such a service would have enough passengers to justify even the operating subsidy [[let alone construction and equipment acquisition).

I am not opposed to AA-Detroit rail, if the technical details could be worked out, and the financial loss was both minimized and stable. Also, no commuter service linking the 2 cities is worth the bother or expense if it doesn't connect directly to the airport. Until such time, regular express bus service could be done for far less money, with stops in Detroit, Dearborn, airport, Ypsi and AA. That would also help demonstrate what actual demand there would be for rail service.