LITTLE ROCK — The Brits are keen on public transportation. And the Stagecoach Group has become a major player in the United Kingdom in eight years. Now it is setting its sights on the United States.
The Scottish-born Stagecoach Group’s North American subsidiary, Coach USA, began offering low-fare rides on its double-deck Megabuses in 2006.
The first Megabus rolled into Little Rock on June 19. It became one of nearly 200 U.S. and Canadian cities served by 255 big, colorful express buses since the carrier started operations in North America.
Fares are as low as $1.
That’s true, Megabus.com President and Chief Operating Officer Dale Moser says.
If you make your online reservation early enough, that’s what it is. Plus a 50-cent fee.
There is no “average” price, he said, but the top fare for the leg from Little Rock to Dallas, for instance, is probably $18 to $25. The Arkansas capital is one of six cities served since the Dallas hub was set up last month.
The other cities are Houston, San Antonio and Austin, Texas, as well as Memphis and Norman, Okla. Oklahoma City has been added since then.
Alex Smart was waiting in line in the 100-degree heat Wednesday afternoon in the parking lot just south of East Sixth Street between Cumberland and Scott streets so he could board the bus to his hometown of Atlanta, by way of Memphis and Birmingham, Ala. His ticket cost $30, he said.
This wasn’t his first time on the bus, which is equipped with Wi-Fi and electrical outlets.
“It saves me a lot of money,” said Smart, 18, a student at Arkansas Baptist College. “On a scale of 1 to 10, it’s a 10.”
Smart is in Megabus’ top demographic, 18- to 30-year-olds. That is followed by women 30 to 55, then retirees, business commuters and the like, Moser said.
Dedra Lloyd of Little Rock said she paid $10 for her nonstop ride to Memphis.
Delores Nives was headed to Atlanta. She said she paid $37, compared with $137 on Greyhound.
Greyhound spokesman Maureen Richmond said that same-day tickets to Atlanta from Little Rock are $114.20 on the Internet. Greyhound does not offer express service out of Little Rock, Richmond said. The Memphis trip, available for $28.80 on the Internet, makes a stop in Forrest City. There are two Greyhound schedules to Dallas out of Little Rock, Richmond said. One makes one stop; the other has six stops. Advance tickets can be bought for $25, she said.
Megabus driver Ervin Walker said he was carrying 45 passengers to Memphis on Wednesday, but has carried as many as 79, two short of full capacity. Fifty to 60 is typical, he said.
Daily departures from Little Rock for Dallas are 1:45 a.m. and 12:45 p.m. Departures to Memphis are at 4:15 a.m. and 4:15 p.m.
“The logo excites people,” Walker said of the big, jolly driver offering the eye-popping fare.
Moser says the company relies on old-fashioned wordof-mouth advertising, and the Internet.
Stagecoach Group shares closed Friday on the London Stock Exchange at $444.42. Its 52-week range is $354.80 to $514.92.
The size of the United States, compared with Great Britain, is not a challenge, Moser said.
It is the American love affair with the automobile.
“Our biggest apprehension with our concept was getting people out of their automobiles,” Moser said. “Ninety-seven percent of our customers have either told us they have left their car at home, have taken us instead of an airplane or a train, and, lastly, because we have made it more affordable.”
The cost of gasoline, wear and tear and insurance for an auto amounts to about 50 cents a mile, Moser said. So the 135-mile trip from Little Rock to Memphis is cheaper by Megabus, he said.
Plus, he said, stopping “10 times between Little Rock and Dallas” is not a factor. Megabus.com does not use terminals, freeing up money for more buses and helping to keep fares low, he said.
Every bus carries “some” $1 tickets for the early birds. The highest prices are for the last seats on the bus, or the day before the trip.
Business, Pages 65 on 07/29/2012