Chinatown Bus Lines

A Guide to the Chinatown Bus

The word is out-the most cost-effective way to get from one major U.S.  Town to another is on the'Chinatown bus'.  Recently this has become transportation option of choice for budget travelers in new york, Washington DC, and Boston, and more lately on the West Coast.  Scholars, backpackers, and an array of other savvy travelers have long liked the rock bottom prices that these bus companies offer.  Notwithstanding the popularity 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 NY's Chinatown started running daily bus service from Chinatown in NY to Chinatown in Boston.  The service was directed at Asian immigrants who wanted to shop or visit family in either city and required inexpensive and convenient transportation.  The service was bare bones-no advertising, buyer service, or bus stations.  Purchasers simply went to the bus stop, waited for the bus ( or lorry ), and paid the driver upon boarding.  For those willing to do without frills, they offered almost the same service as traditional bus firms at a significantly 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 handier. 

shortly more bus companies copied this model and began offering service in other cities.  Now you can find this kind of bus service in Philadelphia, Virginia, Baltimore Washington DC, los angeles, Vegas and San Francisco.  At this point the term'Chinatown bus' is used more loosely to explain this type of low-cost/low-frills service.  Many if not most, of the companies do not have Chinatown as their main location and may not minister to the immigrant population at all .  These operators are also sometimes known as'curbside' operators. 

How can tickets be so cheap?

$15 between Big Apple to Boston?  $25 from las vegas to Los Angeles?  It appears tough to fathom.  Chinatown bus firms may be able to keep costs low because they operate in a fundamentally different way from normal carriers.  Foremost, the service is very basic.  There's not much in the way of client service or amenities.  Most of these operators don't have formal stations, picking up passengers at bus stops instead.  They eschew standard advertising in favor of word of mouth.  Further, lots of the operators play a very hands-on role in the operation-you will not see idle executives at a tiny independent bus company.  Ultimately, these operators ensure they fill their buses.  That is why Chinatown bus operators usually only operate on heavily trafficked routes.  Indeed some companies only run buses at top times.

Are they safe?

When these firms first started operating, concerns were raised about safety standards.  There is still controversy within the bus industry about whether these newcomers are complying with the same regulations as the conventional firms. However a task force set up by the federal government to take a look at safety issues found that Chinatown bus companies did not perform good or bad than other sorts of bus corporations ( ie.  Charter, tour buses ).  All bus corporations operating in the U.S.  Must bear the same inspection standards and must obey the same rules.  Realistically there is probably a variety of quality among Chinatown bus carriers.  Some are fly-by-night operators trying to make a fast buck, while others are legitimized entrepreneurs who intend to grow and operate a long term business. 

What you should expect

• No frills service-the driver might be the ticket collector ; there will not be lots of shopper service.
• Comfortable buses.  Regardless of the low fares buses are generally quite nice.  Most buses are close to Greyhound and many are actually more luxury.
• Communication challenges.  Drivers are legally required to communicate enough English to help passengers in the case of emergency.  In truth this is frequently sticked to rather loosely.  At the 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 lavatory on board but there's usually a 10 or fifteen minute lavatory break on trips over four hours.  Don't be late returning to the bus, the driver won't count heads before leaving at the appointed time.
• Full buses.  Buses definitely sell out at peak times ( weekends and evenings ).  Book ahead or get there early if you'd like secure a seat.
• Plastic Bags.  A strange little quirk on Chinatown buses is that each aisle seat usually has a plastic grocery bag tied to the arm.  I guess they find this is the most effective way to keep the buses clean.

How do I find the Chinatown Bus?

Again,'Chinatown bus' is a term used to explain a sort of operator and not an individual bus company.  Many not related bus companies fall into this category.  Since most Chinatown buses don't spend money on advertising it can be hard to discover details about schedules and bus stop locations.  Plenty of the carriers are becoming savvier about the net and quite a few have websites with information.  Usually 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 corporations and the writer's employer, GotoBus.com, is a centralized booking site that has schedules and sells tickets online for most Chinatown bus corporations. 

The Chinatown bus isn't for everyone.  If you want an orderly system with Yankee style customer service, you should potentially stick to traditional carriers.  However if you know what to expect and come prepared with a feeling of journey and humor, you should enjoy the trip absolutely fine.  You will also enjoy the cash you save!

To read more about travel topics, visit famouswonders.com and while you are at it, check out Shouxi Lake China.

Tags: bus, China, Chinatown, fares