Planning long-distance public transit routes

[Batsy]

I was rubber tramping for 2.5 years, but I’m no longer able to drive for now due to disabilities. I’m exploring ways to travel on foot, but I’m not fully ready to commit to hitchhiking and/or train hopping just yet. I’ve never been on the road without a vehicle, so I decided I might ease myself into this style of travel with more predictable modes of transportation while I’m still finding my groove even if I have to pay for them. (This safety net would be worth it because of my disability situation).

So that brings me to the advice I’m seeking:

I’m already aware of Amtrak, Greyhound, and Flixbus for long-distance travel in the US. What other options are there that y’all are aware of for long distance busses, trains, and more?

And are there any apps or websites out there where people can enter a starting point and destination and see all of their options for long distance transit between them? Google maps doesn’t show every option, usually just greyhound and flixbus.

 

[ali]

Rome2Rio is the best I've found for multi modal trips. It does include some local coach operators outside of the big two. Sadly for the environment in a lot of cases going by plane will be cheaper and faster than land travel in the US.

Google Maps I've found does better than Rome2Rio at recommending local public transport options, which in some places go further than you might expect, but in other places are depressingly absent.

Many towns in the US don't have public transit available at all, but some have on demand services for disabled people and the elderly that do not have a formal timetable but can be booked in advance. I haven't bothered to try this myself, but if you are desperate you should check the local government websites of every jurisdiction you plan to travel through, it's usually on there where I have discovered the service even exists.

Chinatown buses are also an option, but they are hard to figure out if you do not have connections inside the diaspora. It's been a while since I was in the US or Canada, but there used to be bus services that linked up diaspora communities in the major cities that were cheaper than the mainstream operators, essentially a low key charter bus operation for an underserved demographic. You might be able to find these by looking at community notice boards around temples and Asian grocery stores, although those could be in another language. Maybe talk to some new migrants or older folks if they seem friendly.

There are also casino buses, airport shuttles, resort/marina shuttles etc. I'm not sure how easy it is to get on these without being part of a tour group or having an explicit booking, but depending on the situation you might be able to get a seat anyway. I've gotten a few free rides in the past on these just by asking, but I'm not sure if it was a favor of the driver or a formal policy.

Incidentally I think most of this stuff is detailed in Matt's book, and I don't think anything has changed much in the last 10 years other than rural areas getting even more isolated and traveler hostile as Uber and Lyft killed off local taxi services and public transport options.

 

[Batsy]

Rome2Rio is the best I've found for multi modal trips. It does include some local coach operators outside of the big two. Sadly for the environment in a lot of cases going by plane will be cheaper and faster than land travel in the US.

Google Maps I've found does better than Rome2Rio at recommending local public transport options, which in some places go further than you might expect, but in other places are depressingly absent.

Many towns in the US don't have public transit available at all, but some have on demand services for disabled people and the elderly that do not have a formal timetable but can be booked in advance. I haven't bothered to try this myself, but if you are desperate you should check the local government websites of every jurisdiction you plan to travel through, it's usually on there where I have discovered the service even exists.

Chinatown buses are also an option, but they are hard to figure out if you do not have connections inside the diaspora. It's been a while since I was in the US or Canada, but there used to be bus services that linked up diaspora communities in the major cities that were cheaper than the mainstream operators, essentially a low key charter bus operation for an underserved demographic. You might be able to find these by looking at community notice boards around temples and Asian grocery stores, although those could be in another language. Maybe talk to some new migrants or older folks if they seem friendly.

There are also casino buses, airport shuttles, resort/marina shuttles etc. I'm not sure how easy it is to get on these without being part of a tour group or having an explicit booking, but depending on the situation you might be able to get a seat anyway. I've gotten a few free rides in the past on these just by asking, but I'm not sure if it was a favor of the driver or a formal policy.

Incidentally I think most of this stuff is detailed in Matt's book, and I don't think anything has changed much in the last 10 years other than rural areas getting even more isolated and traveler hostile as Uber and Lyft killed off local taxi services and public transport options.

Awesome, thank you so much!

I’ll have to re-read that part of Matt’s book!

 

[MetalBryan]

For bus travel, search your region - for example, the central US is served by Jefferson Lines in addition to Greyhound and is priced about the same with more/different local stops.

You can also use colleges as a resource - pick two colleges close to your departure/arrival points and write their office of student affairs. Inquire about how to get from A to B.

Check out departure/destination cities Craigslist - there's a ride-share forum under "Community" that might be useful.

If you're feeling adventurous, some cities (aka local police station) will buy you a bus ticket to get you out of their town.

 

[Batsy]

For bus travel, search your region - for example, the central US is served by Jefferson Lines in addition to Greyhound and is priced about the same with more/different local stops.

You can also use colleges as a resource - pick two colleges close to your departure/arrival points and write their office of student affairs. Inquire about how to get from A to B.

Check out departure/destination cities Craigslist - there's a ride-share forum under "Community" that might be useful.

If you're feeling adventurous, some cities (aka local police station) will buy you a bus ticket to get you out of their town.

Thank you, all solid advice!

I’m curious:

I know when people are hitchhiking sometimes it can be unpredictable how far they’ll be taken and sometimes people get let out of a car sooner than expected.

But when people have a a ride share with a stranger they planned in advance, is it still a common thing for people to get “ditched”/told to leave the car part way through the ride for whatever reason (like if it’s not working out between them and the driver)? Or does that tend to be more of a concern specific to when you’re hitch hiking with people you can’t communicate with in advance.

Of course, the road is unpredictable and I realize I can’t plan for everything, but this is something I’ve wondered about.

 

[Dogwater]

From my boots on the ground travels.As dude above said, it depends on the region. But here some that stuck out, hope it helps with your plans ✌️💚

As of Summer 2023

Southwestern Washington, Vancouver (just over the Columbia River from Portland) 5$ transit van east up the river to the Dallas crossing the PCT.

Northwestern Washington had free bus transit from Olympia-Abderdeen all the way to the Coastal towns of Ocean Shores and Westport; along with going up into the Olympics National Forest native communities of Quinault

I also took a 15$ greyhound style bus from Portland to Astoria aka the town from the goonies. And rural transit(short bus) all the way up the Southern WA coast was about 2-5$ and free transfers, so you can get about 100+ miles per charge.

Random citys have free bus transit all over the country since COVID. Most recently was this winter in Shreveport/Bossier City Louisiana.