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Photo of the Day: November 27, 2009
Megabus and BoltBus are seemingly now the biggest players in the saturated and ever growing D.C.-NYC coach bus market. People may argue about which is better in terms of service, but when it comes to leaving early in the morning, Megabus is hands down the top choice. They’re the only carrier that offers pre-dawn options to New York, leaving from D.C. at 5:15 and 6:15 a.m. Just don’t try to show up for an early morning bus without a reservation.
Walkup sales are permitted on Megabus if there’s space on the bus, just like with all carriers. But DCist recently witnessed weary passengers denied passage on half empty Megabuses because the company doesn't actually have a way for them to pay at that hour. Megabus drivers are not allowed to accept cash, and their sales associate, with handheld credit card machine in tow, doesn’t arrive at the D.C. stop until 7 a.m. No one staffs Megabus’ customer service hotline that early to accept payment by phone, or even to agree to give passengers permission to ride and pay upon arrival in New York. And what about paying on the spot on a phone with internet access? Nope. The Megabus web site is actually down for routine maintenance for 90 minutes at that time every morning.
The situation is "something clearly we need to look into," said Megabus Director of Operations Edward Hodgson. "We'd obviously want to make sure the site's as available as it possibly can be, particularly when people are looking to board the bus and pay."
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In other news, McDonalds Happy Meals, while inexpensive, are cheaply produced and give you violent, explosive diarrhea. The included toy was made by slaves in China out of powdered lead paint, the ground-up bones of executed prisoners, and the tears of children. It also wants to kill you and have sex with your pets. Apart from that, it's a great deal!
Are people that desperate to get to NYC at the last minute at that ungodly hour that they couldn't have thought out making a reservation the night before?
You underestimate the loathing some transplants have for their adopted city. They can't GTFO fast enough on the weekend. Then there's the everything-is-better-in-NYC crowd. They're fools, really. All the cool kids know that everything is better in Australia. The women are prettier, the drugs are better, and the pizzas put those awful NY slices to shame. Those Australian pizzas will really "knock your socks off." They're shaped like an undulating, psychedelic vulva and they're the size and weight of a manhole cover.
It's the same late at night. The 11:59pm Megabus driver often points people towards the 11:59pm Bolt Bus if they haven't booked ahead. Bolt will issue tickets at midnight, but not Megabus. (Although I think Megabus's phone number is staffed at midnight.)
I'd recommend the Chinatown bus over at 6th & H Sts. $35 bux roundtrip DC-NYC.
Spend the money, take Amtrak, or fly. When you factor in the time spent sitting traffic on the NJ Turnpike, its a wash.
Better yet, just hop a boxcar with all the other yuppie hobos. Just pray you don't run into me, that's all.
And the time getting to the airport early, in airport security and then taking a taxi from LGA or JFK is any better?
Depends on where you're going in NYC...airport security for the shuttles at LGA is negligible at best. Flying out of JFK would be stupid for various reasons.
And they operate a half-hourly coach service from various points in Manhattan for around $10 one-way.
Not a fan of those MegaBuses that I get stuck behind on the BW Parkway every day. MegaBusMan may look cheery, but that's only because he's about to devour your soul.
I have the perfect solution to this problem: my fists. I hope that rosy-cheeked cherub on the side of the bus likes knuckle sandwiches.
This species has spirit! I wager 400 quatloos on boondoggle.
Do your research, DCist. The whole premise of the article is flawed. There are two other bus companies operating pre-dawn coach service to NYC: Eastern/Todays (now owned by Coach USA) at 1:30 AM and 3:30 AM, and New Century (Chinatown bus) at 2:00 AM and 3:30 AM.
I'm curious as to why Mega and Bolt are 'seemingly' the biggest players? Surely such an assertion requires some evidence to back that up?
Personally, I prefer Washington Deluxe. The trip typically takes 3.5-4 hours, which is roughly the same as taking the train, and it's a lot less stressful than flying. Also, coach service is much more 'eco-conscious' than air travel.
I prefer DC2NY to Washington Deluxe. I've had nothing but problems with WD.
Unless you live near LGA or JFK, it makes little sense to fly. And Amtrak might be worth it on holidays (more traffic) but even with light traffic, the bus isn't that much of a difference.
The Chinatown buses may be roughly $15 cheaper round trip but I think I may know why I take Bolt only: wifi access AND plugs in the back of the seats, the latter being effing excellent. I haven't checked if MegaBus has both of these but I know the Chinatown ones don't (have both).
Iceman rev -
I don't think of those those 1:30, 2:00, and 3:30 buses as pre-dawn, though the semantic argument could be made either way. To me they're late night or the middle of the night. The 5:15 bus is ideal to me. You can actually wake up early--extremely early--get on the bus, and be at your destination before 10. A 1:30 bus is late night. Catching a bus at 3:30 seems quite unpleasant. Do you try to fall asleep and then wake up at 3 to get to the bus?
In terms of biggest players, Megabus and BoltBus offer more buses a day than any other carrier. MegaBus offers the most buses and their buses are the biggest, since they usually use double-deckers that seat 81 passengers. BoltBus runs a close second in terms of number of trips per day. And their buses are frequently sold out, so I'd wager that they're the most popular and maybe moving the most amount of people, though I don't have the numberrs. Mega's cousin Eastern/Todays runs lots of buses, but not as many as my "biggest players." The other companies don't have nearly as many buses as Mega and Bolt.
I do agree with you that the bus is certainly the way to go.