Passenger Bus, Rail and Motorcoach Industry News

The report, conducted by the New York economic consulting firm John Dunham and Associates, duplicates a study following Marketplace 2012 in Grapevine, Texas, with the $108.3 million figure representing a $30 million increase from 2012 to 2013

Funds will help power the ABA Foundation for 2013 and enables the organization to focus on its core mission of providing critical research and scholarships to the motorcoach, tour and travel industry.

This was the first time the NTSB’s training has ever been offered to the motorcoach industry. The seven-hour session was sponsored by National Interstate Insurance Co.

Anderson Coach and Travel of Greenville, Pa., and Northeast Charter and Tour Co. of Lewiston, Maine, were honored at the American Bus Association’s annual Marketplace, which took place from Jan. 5 to 9 in Charlotte, N.C., as the recipients of ABA’s “Green Operator Award.”

In 2012, the government cracked down on a number of low-fare bus companies that were shoddily run and did not follow safety regulations.

More than 3,000 attendees are estimated to attend Marketplace 2015. Marketplace is the show where business gets done, generating nearly $80 million dollars for the delegates, suppliers and host city in 2012.

Peter Pantuso told members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee that motorcoach transportation in the U.S. continues strong growth and remains exceptionally competitive against other modes of transportation, especially considering that Amtrak remains heavily subsidized by the federal government.

FTA granted the transit system a waiver so it could provide “limited charter service” during the Democratic National Convention. Decision comes after the ABA asked regulators not to grant the waiver to CATS to use its buses to transport people with disabilities and other accessibility issues.

In its letter to the U.S. DOT, ABA argues that Charlotte officials have not exhausted all efforts to find privately operated motorcoaches to provide charter service to meet the demands of the upcoming Democratic National Convention.

To ensure ABA is complying with and implementing new transportation safety regulations, eVerifile also will consult with the ABA on a number of regulatory requirements instituted by the U.S.’s FTA, NTSB and TSA, and Transport Canada.