Business travelers, a few, taking buses

NEW YORK, Sept. 21 (UPI) -- Several U.S. bus lines said they are taking out seats, adding Internet access and movies and dropping fares to attract business travelers.

Business travel may be traditionally the market for airlines and railroads, but Bruce Westcott, vice president of business development for Washington-to-Boston bus line Peter Pan told USA Today, "We're attracting a lot more business ridership," the newspaper reported Tuesday.

Greyhound has given passengers more leg room on East Coast and Midwest shuttles, while BoltBus sells the first reserved seat on many rides for $1 fares. On Florida buses owned by RedCoach, passengers can watch movies on the Miami to Orlando route, the newspaper said.

"With a lot of the amenities ... BoltBus and newer Greyhounds are ideal travel options for business professionals," said Tim Stokes, a spokesman for BoltBus, which was formed as a Peter Pan and Greyhound partnership.

Business Travel Coalition Chairman Kevin Mitchell said "very few" business travelers had made the switch, "although it gets reviewed with every upgrade in the service."

But Westcott said bus lines are doing what they can to overcome the image of buses as the low-rent option for travelers.

"Now you have sleeker buses and a different clientele," he said. "We had ... a whole new branding launch to get people to understand that riding the bus isn't being a second-class citizen. You could take the bus and be proud of it."