One week after megabus terminated its service in Columbia, MO and Kansas City, MO in late September this year, Greyhound seized the opportunity to increase its ridership among major cities in Missouri extending to Chicago. The bus company reduced its ticket price on all the bus routes taking off from Columbia and Kansas City, which will allow for inexpensive bus travel for a large group of passengers.
A one-way ticket between Columbia and St. Louis or Kansas City will be as cheap as $10 on weekdays and $17 on weekends from now on. Between Columbia and Chicago, the Greyhound Bus became the single travel option after megabus’ dropout. Instead of raising the ticket fares, Greyhound lowered its price to $25 on weekdays and $33 on weekends. This move has been favored especially by students, who stand for a major part of the overall ridership. Although a Greyhound ticket has already been much cheaper than the majority of the local bus operators’ fares, the company always endeavors to adapt its price in order to satisfy the demand of passengers, while staying competitive in the market at the same time.
“We recognize that college students represent a significant portion of our customer base,” says the Greyhound spokeswoman Ashley Sears. She deems that a host of colleges in Columbia will create a remarkable chance to help Greyhound grow its current ridership up to a higher level. Furthermore, by offering affordable bus trips, the company would like to encourage passengers to select inexpensive transport alternatives like the bus for intercity travel in the future.
In addition to cutting the price, the CCO of the Greyhound Lines, Andy Kaplinsky declares that they are devoted to delivering extra comfort and satisfaction to students as well. “We are looking to provide seamless connectivity at the University of Missouri, Stephens College and Columbia College with a stop near campus where it is more convenient for students to catch a bus,” says Kaplinsky. He aspires to guarantee the students and the other passengers much greater convenience to connect themselves with friends and family not only in Missouri but also across the US. Besides, this will solve the students’ difficulty of accessing the current bus stop located at Highway 40, which is beyond the city’s range.
With megabus out of sight, Greyhound will be likely to gain more popularity between Missouri and the Windy City with its cheap tickets and premium services in the future.
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