An intercity bus service (North American English) or inter-city coach service (British English and Commonwealth English), also called a long-distance, express, over-the-road, commercial, long-haul or highway bus or coach service, is a public transport service using coaches to carry passengers significant distances between different cities, towns or other populated areas. Unlike a transit bus service, which has frequent stops throughout a city or town, an inter-city bus service generally has a single stop at one location in or near a city – usually at a transit interchange – and travels long distances without stopping. Inter-city bus services may be operated by government agencies or private industry, for profit and not for profit.Garber, Nicholas J; Traffic and Highway Engineering, Lester A. Hoel, page 46 Inter-city coach travel can serve areas or countries with no train services, or may be set up to compete with trains by providing a more flexible or cheaper alternative.
The conversion of inter-city road lanes into public transit only lanes can significantly increase the efficacy of the public transit system, especially when done in scale as in Israel. However, lack of enforcement can reduce the efficiency and speed of intercity buses on such lanes. The creation on scale of public transit only intercity lanes through the conversion of existing car lanes into public transit only lanes can lead to major boosts to the economy according to The Marker.
Inter-city bus services are of prime importance in lightly populated rural areas that often have little or no public transport.
Inter-city bus services are one of four common transport methods between cities, not all of which are available in all places; the others are by airliner, train and private car.
History Stagecoaches
The first intercity scheduled transport service was called the stagecoach and originated in the 17th century. Crude coaches were being built from the 16th century in England, but without suspension, these coaches achieved very low speeds on the poor quality rutted roads of the time. By the mid 17th century, a basic stagecoach infrastructure was being put in place. The first stagecoach route started in 1610 and ran from Edinburgh to Leith. This was followed by a steady proliferation of other routes around the country.
A string of coaching inns operated as stopping points for travellers on the route between London and Liverpool by the mid 17th century. The coach would depart every Monday and Thursday and took roughly ten days to make the journey during the summer months. They also became widely adopted for travel in and around London by mid-century and generally travelled at a few miles per hour. Shakespeare's first plays were staged at coaching inns such as The George Inn, Southwark.
The speed of travel remained constant until the mid-18th century. Reforms of the turnpike trusts, new methods of road building and the improved construction of coaches all led to a sustained rise in the comfort and speed of the average journey—from an average journey length of 2 days for the Cambridge-London route in 1750 to a length of under 7 hours in 1820. Robert Hooke helped in the construction of some of the first spring-suspended coaches in the 1660s and spoked wheels with iron rim brakes were introduced, improving the characteristics of the coach.
In 1754, a Manchester-based company began a new service called the "Flying Coach". It was advertised with the following announcement: "However incredible it may appear, this coach will actually (barring incidents) arrive in London in four days and a half after leaving Manchester." A similar service was begun from Liverpool three years later, using coaches with steel spring suspension. This coach took an unprecedented three days to reach London with an average speed of .
Even more dramatic improvements to coach speed were made by John Palmer at the British Post Office, who commissioned a fleet of mail coaches to deliver the post across the country. His experimental coach left Bristol at 4 pm on 2 August 1784 and arrived in London just 16 hours later.The Postman and the Postal Service, Vera Southgate, Wills & Hepworth Ltd, 1965, England
The golden age of the stagecoach was during the Regency period, from 1800 to 1830. The era saw great improvements in the design of the coaches, notably by John Besant in 1792 and 1795. His coach had a greatly improved turning capacity and braking system, and a novel feature that prevented the wheels from falling off while the coach was in motion. Obadiah Elliott registered the first patent for a spring-suspension vehicle. Each wheel had two durable steel leaf springs on each side and the body of the carriage was fixed directly to the springs attached to the axles.
Steady improvements in road construction were also made at this time, most importantly the widespread implementation of Macadam roads up and down the country. Coaches in this period travelled at around and greatly increased the level of mobility in the country, both for people and for mail. Each route had an average of four coaches operating on it at one time – two for both directions and a further two spares in case of a breakdown en route.
Motorbuses The development of railways in the 1830s spelt the end for the stagecoaches across Europe and America, with only a few companies surviving to provide services for short journeys and excursions until the early years of the 20th century.Anderson, R.C.A. and Frankis, G. (1970) History of Royal Blue Express Services David & Charles Chapter 1Dyos, H. J. & Aldcroft, D.H. (1969) British Transport, an economic survey Penguin Books, p.225
The first motor coaches were acquired by operators of those horse-drawn vehicles. W. C. Standerwick of Blackpool, England acquired its first motor charabanc in 1911, and Royal Blue from Bournemouth acquired its first motor charabanc in 1913.Anderson, R.C.A. and Frankis, G. (1970) History of Royal Blue Express Services David & Charles p.28 Motor coaches were initially used only for excursions.Anderson and Frankis (1970) p.32
In 1919, Royal Blue took advantage of a rail strike to run a coach service from Bournemouth to London. The service was so successful that it expanded rapidly.Anderson & Frankis, p.41 In 1920, the Minister of Transport Eric Campbell Geddes was quoted in Punch magazine as saying "I think it would be a calamity if we did anything to prevent the economic use of charabancs" and expressed concern at the problems caused to small charabanc and omnibus operators in parliament.
In America, Carl Eric Wickman began providing the first service in 1913. Frustrated about being unable to sell a seven-passenger automobile on the showroom floor of the dealership where he worked, he purchased the vehicle himself and started using it to transport miners between Hibbing and Alice, Minnesota. He began providing this service regularly in what would start a new company and industry.The streamline era Greyhound terminals: the architecture of W.S. Arrasmith By Frank E. Wrenick, page 99 The company would one day be known as Greyhound.
In 1914, Pennsylvania was the first state to pass regulations for bus service in order to prevent monopolies of the industry from forming.The best transportation system in the world: railroads, trucks, airlines ... By Mark H. Rose, Bruce Edsall Seely, Paul F. Barrett, page 46 All remaining U.S. states would soon follow.Deregulation and the future of intercity passenger travel, John Robert Meyer, Clinton V. Oster, p. 169
The coach industry expanded rapidly in the 1920s, a period of intense competition.Flitton, D.(2004) 50 Years of South Midland Paul Lacey , p.41The best transportation system in the world: railroads, trucks, airlines ... By Mark H. Rose, Bruce Edsall Seely, Paul F. Barrett, page 45 The Road Traffic Act 1930 in the UK introduced a national system of regulation of passenger road transport and authorised local authorities to operate transport services. It also imposed a speed limit of for coaches whilst removing any speed limit for private cars.
The 1930s to the 1950s saw the development of bus stations for intercity transport. Many expanded from simple stops into major architecturally designed terminals that included shopping and other businesses.Suburbanizing the masses: public transport and urban development in ... By Colin Divall, Winstan Bond, pages 270, 285 Intercity bus transport increased in speed, efficiency and popularity until the 1950s and 1960s, when as the popularity of the private automobile has increased, the use of intercity bus service has declined. For example, in Canada in the 1950s, 120 million passengers boarded intercity bus service each year; in the 1960s, this number declined to 50 million. During the 1990s, it was down to 10 million.Making public transport work By Mark Bunting, page 13
Characteristics of inter-city buses/coaches
Intercity buses, as they hold passengers for significant periods of time on long journeys, are designed for comfort. Intercity buses, also known as coaches or motor coaches are almost always high-floor buses, with separate luggage-hold mounted below the passenger compartment. In contrast to transit buses, motor coaches typically feature forward-facing seating, with no provision for standing. Other accommodations may include onboard restrooms, televisions, and overhead luggage space. A sleeper bus is an example of a vehicle with optimum amenity for the longest travel times, specially adapted for passengers to sleep in. A tide-coach operates to co-ordinate its schedule with the tide patterns at a seaport.
Route and operation An intercity coach service may depart from a bus station with facilities for travellers or from a simple roadside bus stop. A coachway interchange is a term (in the United Kingdom) for a stopping place on the edge of a town, with connecting local transport. Park and ride facilities allow passengers to begin or complete their journeys by automobile. Intercity bus routes may follow a direct highway or freeway/motorway for shortest journey times, or travel via a scenic route for the enjoyment of passengers.
Intercity buses may run less frequently and with fewer stops than a transit bus service. One common arrangement is to have several stops at the beginning of the trip, and several near the end, with the majority of the trip non-stop on a highway. Some stops may have service restrictions, such as "boarding only" (also called "pickup only") and "discharge only" (also called "set-down only"). Routes aimed at commuters may have most or all scheduled trips in the morning heading to an urban central business district, with trips in the evening mainly heading toward suburbs.
Intercity coaches may also be used to supplement or replace another transport service, for example when a train or airline route is not in service.
Inter-city bus/coach lanes In Israel, intercity roads and highways have at times dedicated lanes which can only be used by buses. Such lanes ensure that intercity buses are not hindered by traffic jams and can dramatically improve travel times. Such improvements make public transport more attractive which when done on scale can lead to an "extraordinary economic boost to the overall economy". An example of intercity lanes in scale is the Tel Aviv metropolitan area in which the city of Tel Aviv in conjunction with the Israeli transportation ministry pushed for the establishment of such lanes. The work required to convert lanes was done over one night and required the painting of clear symbols (In Israel, yellow diamonds) which indicate that there is a public transit only lane. The Marker reported that lack of effective enforcement has derailed the effectiveness of such lanes since lack of police enforcement has led some motorists to use the lanes, thus damaging public transit efficacy.
Safety