A Guide to the Chinatown Bus
The word is out-the most cost-effective method to get from one major U.S. Town to another is on the'Chinatown bus'. In recent years this has become transportation option of choice for budget travelers in the Big Apple, Washington DC, and Boston, and more recently on the West Coast. Students, backpackers, and an array of other savvy travelers have long loved the rock bottom costs that these bus companies offer. Regardless of the idolization of these bus lines it can still be tough to find information on Chinatown bus service.
What exactly is a'Chinatown Bus'? Read on and you will have the inside track on this great budget travel option.
Chinatown Bus history
The Chinatown bus phenomenon began in the late 1990s when an entrepreneur in new york's Chinatown started running daily bus service from Chinatown in NY to Chinatown in Boston. The service was targeted at Asian immigrants who wished to shop or visit relatives in either town and required inexpensive and convenient transport. The service was bare bones-no advertising, buyer service, or bus stations. Customers simply went to the bus stop, waited for the bus ( or wagon ), and paid the driver upon boarding. For those ready to do without frills, they offered virtually the same service as traditional bus firms at a substantially lower cost. Before long, the word spread and all sorts of folk started using the service. It became especially popular with scholars, budget travelers, or people for whom the service was simply more acceptable.
shortly more bus companies replicated this model and started offering service in other cities. Now you can find this kind of bus service in Philadelphia, Virginia, Baltimore Washington DC, L. A. , las vegas and San Francisco. At this point the term'Chinatown bus' is used more loosely to explain this sort of low-cost/low-frills service. Many if not most, of the companies do not have Chinatown as their main location and may not cater to the immigrant population in the slightest. These operators are also occasionally referred to as'curbside' operators.
How can tickets be so cheap?
$15 between Long Island to Boston? $25 from las vegas to Los Angeles? It seems tough to fathom. Chinatown bus firms can keep prices low because they operate in an essentially different way from traditional carriers. Foremost, the service is extremely basic. There's not much in the way of customer service or comforts. The majority of these operators do not have formal stations, picking up passengers at bus stops instead. They eschew traditional advertising in favor of personal recommendation. Further, lots of the operators play a particularly hands-on role in the operation-you will not see idle middle management at a little independent bus company. Eventually, these operators ensure they fill their buses. That is why Chinatown bus operators customarily only operate on heavily trafficked routes. Indeed some companies only run buses at peak times.
Are they safe?
When these firms first started operating, concerns were raised about safety standards. There's still controversy in the bus industry about whether these newbies are complying with the same rules as the traditional companies. However a task force set up by the federal government to take a look at questions of safety discovered that Chinatown bus corporations didn't perform good or bad than other types of bus corporations ( ie. Charter, tour buses ). All bus corporations operating in the U.S. Must go through the same inspection standards and must go along with the same rules. Realistically there's probably a variety of quality among Chinatown bus carriers. Some are fly-by-night operators attempting to make a fast buck, while others are bonafide entrepreneurs who plan to grow and operate a long term business.
What you must expect
- No frills service-the driver could be the ticket collector ; there won't be lots of customer service.
- Comfortable buses. Despite the low fares buses are sometimes quite nice. Most buses are close to Greyhound and many are actually more deluxe.
- Communication challenges. Drivers are legally required to speak enough English to help passengers in the case of emergency. In reality this is frequently sticked to rather loosely. At the very least, expect your driver to have an accent.
- Possible delays. Many of these bus routes are on highly congested roads. When the roads are busy, expect delays.
- Rest stops. Buses will have a toilet on board but there's generally a 10 or 15 minute bathroom break on trips over 4 hours. Don't be late returning to the bus, the driver will not count heads before leaving at the appointed time.
- Full buses. Buses definitely sell out at top times ( weekends and evenings ). Book ahead or get there early if you want secure a seat.
- Plastic Bags. An odd little quirk on Chinatown buses is that each aisle seat usually has a plastic grocery bag tied to the arm. I assume they find this is the best way to keep the buses clean.
How do I find the Chinatown Bus?
Again,'Chinatown bus' is a term used to explain a type of operator and not an individual bus company. Many unrelated bus firms fall into this category. Since most Chinatown buses do not spend money on advertising it can be hard to discover details about schedules and bus stop locations. Lots of the carriers are becoming savvier about the net and a few have websites with information. Sometimes a Net search will yield links to bus service to your destination. There are also many directories, for example chinatown-bus.org that include links for most Chinatown bus companies and the author's employer, GotoBus.com, is a centralized booking site that has schedules and sells tickets online for most Chinatown bus firms.
The Chinatown bus isn't for everybody. If you want an orderly system with American style customer service, you should likely stick to traditional carriers. However if you know what to expect and come prepared with a feeling of adventure and humor, you should enjoy the trip absolutely fine. You'll also enjoy the money you save!
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