Just when the opportunity to slaughter the commercial airline industry and explode into prominence, the same old do-nothings in the motorcoach industry continue to do what they do: Nothing. The term ‘impotence’ would be understated and misleading, since that term would suggest, at least, that some sort of challenge failed. Five previous articles about this opportunity in National Bus Trader obviously accomplished nothing – unless they triggered a misguided response by the airline industry, which as least recognizes the opportunity (see discussion below). But the TNCs, already exploding into the schoolbus and transit industries, cannot be far behind – if
Maybe these are the three genuine stages of life. They certainly appear to be for the U.S. motorcoach industry. In parts 1-4 of this series, I identified the greatest opportunity for motorcoach growth in decades (see https://transalt.com/article/survival-and-prosperity-part-1-magic-corridors/), followed by describing the major features of the vehicle that could accomplish this feat (https://transalt.com/article/survival-and-prosperity-part-2-the-magic-coach/), and finally outlining some innovative operating approaches to maximize ridership and profits when deploying a few (see https://transalt.com/article/survival-and-prosperity-part-4-service-concepts/). At least a handful of operators are listening – unless, of course, they saw these opportunities before I did. Recently a few tour companies have been expanding into medium-distance airline
Nearly 350 years ago, as his third “Law of Motion,” Sir Isaac Newton pointed out that, for every action, there is a reaction. But this principle is not restricted to physics. It is part of human nature. As we evolved as a species, then a society and then an economy, this principle has become more and more necessary. With the last four decades’ changes in the distribution of wealth, transit ridership should have increased. Instead, it has declined dramatically. The reaction to this decline has taken three basic forms: (a) an increase in private contracting (see https://transalt.com/article/defending-contractors-part-6-contracting-fixed-route-transit/ ) , (b)
In Parts 1 of this series (see https://transalt.com/article/survival-and-prosperity-part-1-magic-corridors/), I identified a significant, if not extraordinary, opportunity for tens of thousands of motorcoaches to survive and prosper by “mode-splitting” passengers away from short- and medium-distance commercial airline flights. In Part 2 (see https://transalt.com/article/survival-and-prosperity-part-2-the-magic-coach/, I described the characteristics of the vehicle that could accomplish this task. In Part 3 (see https://transalt.com/article/survival-and-prosperity-part-2-the-gains-of-winning-the-cost-of-failure/), I provided the rationale for this opportunity, and concluded by summarizing the characteristics of the vehicle needed. Yet one question remains: Once one has such a vehicle, what does one do with it? On a broad scale, Part 1 of this
In Part 1 of this series, I identified a gaping hole of opportunity for profitable motorcoach service – in countless corridors where intermediate-distance travel is provided only by commercial airlines. In earlier installments, I exposed the travesties of the commercial airline industry (Southwest Airlines excluded) which make travel of any distance by Today’s commercial airlines an expensive, inconvenient-at-best obstacle course (see https://transalt.com/article/drivers-v-robots-part-2-the-nature-of-modern-travel/). I explored this sector’s corruption in great detail (see https://transalt.com/article/expanding-the-mode-split-dividing-line-part-1-exponential-airline-industry-corruption/). These factors render a mode-split from small- and medium-distance commercial airline flights to luxury motorcoach travel an extraordinary opportunity. All we need is the right vehicle, described in
In Part 1 of this series, titled, Magic Corridors, I outlined a strategy by which the motorcoach industry could explode into moderate-length corridors otherwise dominated by commercial airlines. Arithmetically, this strategy would seem impossible to fail. But part of the ability to realize this expansion, and offer a wildly-beneficial alternative, lies in the adaptation of the Coach deployed in such a service. The paragraphs below outline the characteristics these vehicles will need. And it will summarize both a rationale and perspective for the modifications suggested. (Part 3 in this series will expand on these points.) Most interesting is that few
Yes, there are still some opportunities for the motorcoach industry to get back on its feet. This series of installments will provide some new ideas – beyond those discussed briefly in a few previous NATIONAL BUS TRADER articles (see Parts 1, 2 and 3 of Motorcoach Survival in the Age of COVID- 19 in the May, June and August 2021 issues: https://transalt.com/article/motorcoach-survival-in-the-age-of-covid-19-part-1-roles-and-opportunities/; https://transalt.com/article/motorcoach-survival-in-the-age-of-covid-19-part-2-on-the-road-again/, and https://transalt.com/article/motorcoach-survival-in-the-age-of-covid-19-part-3-the-end-of-charter-and-tour-service-for-now/. Competing with airlines in corridors not serviced by AMTRAK. Frankly, the opportunity outlined below was here all along: Competing with airlines in corridors not serviced by AMTRAK. It was just never optimized. Not that AMTRAK
The clever title Eyes Wide Shut was wasted on a allegedly-sexual movie released in 1999. While there are plenty of mainstream events widely opening our eyes these days, this film’s expression is an understatement for events that have occurred in the United States public transportation field in the last seven or so years. I am not so sure even a dead man’s switch would open many eyes in our field. But I have been trying to do so. This installment is yet another alarm. I mourn the days when my National Bus Trader installments were either positive (like the year-long
Modal competition has ebbed and flowed over the past 100 years. Until the recent incursion of transit network companies (TNCs), each mode managed to find its own niche, some overlaps notwithstanding. At its best, this mix sorted each mode into a role where it had its own defined ridership, and where the hierarchy of modes provided rational choices for many or most non-automobile travelers. Some modes (e.g., motorcoach, taxi and limousine service) required no subsidies, others (e.g., schoolbus service, NEMT service) operated completely with subsidies 1, and still others (e.g. transit and paratransit) operated mostly with subsidies. At the margins,
The first five installments of this series prepared National Bus Trader readers for a large part of their future. Paying even marginal attention to national and global trends, the forces shaping this future should be clear: The rich are getting richer and the poor, poorer. Most of Today’s drivers — in all public transportation modes, public and private — are earning perhaps a fourth of what they did 40 years ago, in Today’s dollars. Transit ridership had been declining by roughly 10 percent nationally two years before the emergence of COVID-19. Studies show it has recovered to reach 35 percent
