Comments on: The Sign Motorcoach Drivers Love (and Hate)

By: mciguy

mciguy — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 01:54:07 +0000

Just a ? as a line run guy.

Why is there so much hostility toward us? We need parking as much as tour guys do. There is NO place to park at the PABT and as a driver who was going to NYC 5 days a week, I know first hand the “fights” that break out over those coveted parking spots.

By: EightWheels

EightWheels — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 14:54:31 +0000

Some good comments, Joe … Union Station in Washington, DC is a huge asset for bus parking; it sure would be great if NYC had something similar, but I don’t see that happening anytime soon. The situation in NYC has improved slightly, between the additional on street parking mentioned in the article above (plus a few more streets I didn’t list there yet — still working on that), and the economy slowing down just a tad, there may be slightly fewer buses there so far this year. Still far from easy, though.

Part of the problem, too, is that the police don’t benefit from the buses being there at all — we’re a problem to them. They don’t care about all the money we’re bring to NYC — they’re not going to see any of it directly. So the city itself has to put the pressure on them to work with us, and that’s a weak link. Sometimes they do, but mostly it seems they don’t. It’s not an easy or simple problem to solve.

By: Joe

Joe — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 13:14:47 +0000

I have not been so lucky to have been to NYC but only twice. I am going again this week. Even being there twice, I know the bad parking situation. While a lot of cities are the same way, NYC seems to be the worst. I have been to D.C. a few times and while the parking is rough, there are places to park. And even if there are none close inside the city, you have Union Station. While you do have to pay, it is covered, and not to unpleasent. The biggest difference and another issue that needs worked on.
One of the times I was in NYC, I was unloading and not even half unloaded and a cop told me to move. I had to circle the block three times until I could finish unloading. I have never had that problem in D.C. The cops have enough common sense to understand that you will only be there for a few minutes and that you are bringing income to their city. While I will agree to a point with the above statement. This is a two way relationship, I think NYC needs the buses much more than the buses need NYC and they need to open their eyes to that fact. If we don’t go to NYC, we have other cities we can go to. If we don’t go to NYC, NYC does not get the revenue.
We need to work hand in hand and so far as I see it, we, the drivers, and the bus companies have been doing all the giving and getting very little in return.

By: EightWheels

EightWheels — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 02:18:55 +0000

Thanks, Brian … I like that analogy, the dog and cat on a rock in the river LOL .

By: Brian Hagey

Brian Hagey — Wed, 01 Apr 2009 20:47:48 +0000

You’ve said it all and said it WELL Bob. I think they will continue to throw us a bone now and then with an extra space or two. So we don’t scream too loud?
They need our charter coaches badly with all the money our riders spend and all the cars we eliminate. They can never admit to that. Concurently we need them badly too as the city offers so much for the charter bus industry and most people don’t want to drive their cars there, its an uneasy but needed relationship like a dog and cat both sharing the same rock on a dangerously rising river….. and as soon as the river lowers, the fighting resumes……