Rant: Greyhound Express Boarding

From time to time, rants come up that are just somethings that just get on your nerves and you just need to vent.  I try not to do that too much as life is better when enjoying the positive things out there for all of us.  Though every now and then, I come on here to share those things that just pick at the back of my mind.  Today I’m sharing something about a company that I have been using for transportation for years, Greyhound.  A bus that can bring you across the United States, and is often used over planes and trains because of the price.  This company has been working on a few changes to try and better themselves for their customers and one of their new things is not really fair to all of the people riding the bus.  Which is what I’m here to complain about.

Normally the bus seats at Greyhound for years have been “first come, first served.”  You could order the option of even getting first seating choices on your bus.  So if you’re traveling with people and wanted to sit together, you arrive early or you buy that option.  Getting there early wasn’t too bad, you get into line and talk with the people around you if you don’t mind waiting in lines.  And by getting on the bus ahead of the crowd, you could sit with the people who are traveling with you, making for a more pleasant trip.  But if you got there late, there was the chance you would be split up because people traveling alone would most likely take a seat without someone already next to them, leaving no two seats empty.  You could ask people to move so you can sit with the person you’re traveling with, though this does not work every time.  So the rule of Greyhound was get there early for good seats.

And this rule was true for most of the trip I just went on this last week.  We were traveling Express.  The first bus we got, we arrived  there late.  So we had to ask someone if they would let us sit together.  Someone was nice enough to move so we could sit next to each other.  We were not mad at the bus station as it was our own fault for being late.  The next stop we had a reboarding pass and was able to get on first, taking seats we knew got emptied out from the last group of people who traveled on the bus.  No problem there. In fact, it wasn’t even a full bus so there was room to breath.  Coming home from this trip, we got to the bus station really early and was second in line in hopes of getting the seats we wanted.  Though at our transfer point in Cleveland Ohio, things went wrong.

First the bus driver said “Those going to Detroit line up at door 3.” So we went in and lined up at door 3, second in line.  A lady and her daughter were behind us, who we talked with until a loud speaker told us to move to door 1.  We grabbed our stuff and raced to door 1.  We got in line, again.

When in this line there was someone else now fourth in line, a lady who looked really tired and ready to go.  She had a strong accent that I didn’t really know and was very nice.  She talked to us for a little, saying how she had a transfer earlier that night but her bus was full that she was left behind for this bus and has been here all night.

This is when I heard the rule that makes my blood boil.  A lady came over and told everyone to grab their bags and get out of line, we do not line up for this bus.  We use our boarding pass numbers.  Now there’s 50 seats to a bus.  So anyone in 1 to 50 is suppose to get a seat.   There is a boarding number on the tickets, a number I’ve never used or noticed before in all these years of traveling Greyhound.  This is how they allow people to to get on the bus.  Tickets 1 to 10, then 11 to 20, 21 to 30, 31 to 40 and 41 to 50.  The lady with her daughter was ticket 53!  There was a ton of people with re-boarding passes.  We watched all of them go onto the bus, then lined up by our numbers. Miki was in the group in front of me, she got let on.  Then they turned around and had me wait as they went in and counted the open seats. With only two open seats left on the bus, not everyone in my group was let on.  I was lucky.  Miki said that if I didn’t get on she would of got off.  This means people with ticket numbers 43 to 50 did not get their guaranteed seats.  The lady who was bumped off of the early bus because it was full was not let onto this bus, and that lady with her daughter that was third in line originally could not get on because the bus was too full.  We left the station with people who should've been on the bus with us, being left behind.

That was not the only problem though.  The theory of not being able to sit with people is very true when you’re in those last groups.  We watched as parents were split up from their small children.  We were originally split up, but two people who didn’t know each other started talking and decided to sit together opening a seat so Miki could sit next to me.  Though I was angry for all of the other people that I knew was in line early enough to sit together, to get on the bus and just be there.  It made for a very unpleasant ride home for me.

Other problems with the full bus trips was things promised for the Express that did not work or was really bad.  Express cost a little more, but you’re suppose to get nice features to enjoy on the ride.  Power outlets to charge your phones, laptops or whatever devices you have with you.  On our first and last bus we took, the power outlets did not work.  Extra feet room, for more comfort are also available on Express buses.  On our first and last bus, I couldn’t even have my laptop on my lap without bending it oddly because I was squished up to the chair in front of me.  And then there was the promised internet.  Three of the four buses had it, and it was crappy.  Hard for us to connect to this internet, and then you get disconnected only a few minutes after getting it to work.  Viewing some websites, like Deviant Art, was impossible.  It was like not having internet at all, and the last bus on our trip did not have the internet.

If it was just these problems, I would not be sitting here boiling, since outlet problems, poor wifi and even the seat arrangement are not things they got full control over all the time.  Outlets go down, wifi is a problem with the provider, and well, they’re still trying to get all the new buses in.  So right now some of the old buses are converted into Express buses and it’s clear when you’re on one of those.  But the line, having people get on by their boarding pass number, that is where I find it not fair.  Everyone paid for their seats and it should be ‘first come, first serve.’ People who have waited the longest should have the option to get on the bus and not be turned away because a number on their ticket.

I wrote an email to Greyhound complaining, though I also gave a suggestion so that their boarding number thing could work better.  If they allow people to choose their seats while ordering their tickets, like planes and theaters do, choose your seating and that way you are guaranteed a seat on the bus you bought your ticket for.  It would not matter to those of us who are waiting to get on, in what order we are brought upon the bus.  So there is an easy solution to this problem.

What are your thoughts on the subject, have you ever traveled by Greyhound?  Do you think people who line up earlier should have the option to get on first or the people who bought their tickets first?   Please share your thoughts, comments or questions in the comment area below.  All email addresses there are left private.