Intercity Bus Ridership Grows Despite Service Cuts

Passengers continue to rely on intercity bus lines, even as cities shutter bus terminals and bus companies restructure to avoid financial failure.

1 minute read

February 14, 2025, 6:00 AM PST

By Diana Ionescu @aworkoffiction


Green Flixbus bus parked on street in Los Angeles, California with palm trees and Hollywood buildings in background on sunny day.

Walter Cicchetti / Adobe Stock

Despite operators’ financial struggles and the closure of dozens of bus terminals around the country, intercity bus ridership is growing in the United States, prompting bus companies to expand their fleets, reveals a report from the Chaddick Institute. “Greyhound acquired 60 motor coaches last year; Trailways, 30; and Peter Pan, 15. The Motorcoach Builders Survey for the third quarter of 2024 saw sales of new coaches up over 15% from the same period in the previous year.”

According to a Smart Cities Dive piece by Dan Zukowski, intercity buses provided almost 50 million riders in 2023, and ridership could grow by as much as 4 percent this year — higher than growth in air travel. Colorado’s Bustang line carried almost 280,000 riders in 2023. Other state-supported bus services are available in North Carolina, Virginia, and Washington,and Maine launched a new intercity service last year. 

As Zukowski notes, “State services like these are made possible by the Federal Transit Administration’s formula grants for rural areas program, also known as Section 5311.”

However, the report warns that closures of terminals have slowed ridership recovery in rural and secondary routes, and some urban bus terminals are on the chopping block or have already closed down.

Thursday, February 13, 2025 in Smart Cities Dive

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Get top-rated, practical training

Wastewater pouring out from a pipe.

Alabama: Trump Terminates Settlements for Black Communities Harmed By Raw Sewage

Trump deemed the landmark civil rights agreement “illegal DEI and environmental justice policy.”

April 13, 2025 - Inside Climate News

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

April 16, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

Black and white photos of camp made up of small 'earthquake shacks' in Dolores Park in 1906 after the San Francisco earthquake.

The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees

More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?

April 15, 2025 - Charles F. Bloszies

People walking up and down stairs in New York City subway station.

In Both Crashes and Crime, Public Transportation is Far Safer than Driving

Contrary to popular assumptions, public transportation has far lower crash and crime rates than automobile travel. For safer communities, improve and encourage transit travel.

April 18 - Scientific American

White public transit bus with bike on front bike rack in Nashville, Tennessee.

Report: Zoning Reforms Should Complement Nashville’s Ambitious Transit Plan

Without reform, restrictive zoning codes will limit the impact of the city’s planned transit expansion and could exclude some of the residents who depend on transit the most.

April 18 - Bloomberg CityLab

An engineer controlling a quality of water ,aerated activated sludge tank at a waste water treatment plant.

Judge Orders Release of Frozen IRA, IIJA Funding

The decision is a victory for environmental groups who charged that freezing funds for critical infrastructure and disaster response programs caused “real and irreparable harm” to communities.

April 18 - Smart Cities Dive