Arthur's Blog: BoltBus and Megabus Expand Routes, Offer Some Seats for $1

Two and three years ago, the era of the cheap, intercity bus seemed to pause a bit. No longer were the two giants in the field -- Megabus and BoltBus -- offering new services on virtually a weekly basis. Both companies seemed to concentrate on their northeastern routes -- the Boston to New York to Philadelphia to Baltimore to Washington, D.C. itinerary that was first developed many years ago by the so-called "Chinatown buses." Both companies stressed the size and financial reliability of their parents: Megabus is a subsidiary of Greyhound, and BoltBus is the U.S. child of a major British bus company.

Now that pause seems to have ended. All within the past several weeks both companies have offered major new routes elsewhere in the United States and $1-a-seat fares to publicize the new itineraries. BoltBus even went so far as to offer a dozen departures a day from communities in New York's Long Island to points on the east side of Manhattan. The same company increased departures on its popular Seattle-to-Portland-to-Vancouver service, and even began offering $1 fares to the first people to book a ride from Seattle to Vancouver. The giant Megabus increased its activity between various stops in California and Las Vegas. It inaugurated service between Oakland, San Francisco and San Jose, California, again offering $1 seats to the first several people to board each departure.

If you will go to the Megabus website and click on its route map, you'll be astonished to see how widespread is that company's current services in the United States. It actually now goes between 120 cities, including those in Texas and Florida (like Orlando to Atlanta). There are now so many opportunities for cheap intercity bus service within the United States that it would be pointless to point out a few representative samples. You simply have to go to the map.

But you should take a look. To publicize their offerings, both companies are offering a great many $1 fares for the remainder of December, and especially in the early winter period, like from early January to mid-March. And both companies are emphasizing their comfort and the availability of free Wi-Fi on almost all buses. The expansion of cheap bus service within the United States is one of the big stories in travel, and something with which all of us should become familiar.