Andrew J. Hawkins
The Great American Bus Crisis.
A private bus route from my town in New Jersey to New York City was just cancelled because the pandemic has wiped out ridership. But apparently the problem is much, much worse than just that one route.
Nearly half of private US bus companies have shut down since 2019, according to the American Bus Association, and more could close as work-from-home policies have altered commuting patterns and more people turn to driving amid the pandemic.
“There were about 3,000 bus companies in 2019, there’s closer to 1,500 or 1,600 bus companies left,” American Bus Association President and Chief Executive Officer Peter Pantuso said in an interview. “It’s possible we could lose more.”
That is very bad.
