Regional links improve

By James llamas     4/4/12 7:00pm

Service improvements announced by Greyhound and Amtrak last month promise to make traveling to and from Houston faster and more convenient, especially for travelers on a budget. Greyhound introduced its Greyhound Express bus service between Houston and Austin, and Amtrak will modify the schedule of the New Orleans to Los Angeles Sunset Limited train to serve Houston during daylight hours.

Greyhound, the nation's largest intercity bus operator, has long run scheduled bus services from its Midtown bus station to destinations across Texas and the region. The experience, however, is often characterized by long, slow trips with frequent stops and limited personal space.

"[Greyhound] gets you there," Sid Richardson College senior Michael Trejo said. "But it definitely isn't the fastest way. Plus, there's the chance you'll get to sit by a released inmate for five hours like I did once."

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Facing increased competition in the Northeast, Southeast and Midwest from operators like Megabus, which offers customers free Wi-Fi and nonstop service, Greyhound launched its Greyhound Express service just over a year ago and expanded it to 60 markets.

Discounted online tickets are available from mygreyhoundexpress.com. Fares on the new Houston to Austin route start at $10, though promotional $1 prices are available during the month of April.

The nonstop schedules make the service competitive with driving, offering a travel time of 2 hours, 48 minutes from Houston to Austin and 4 hours, 8 minutes from Houston to Dallas, including a 15-minute rest stop. Four to eight daily departures in each direction are currently offered, according to the website.

Though Greyhound Express service in Texas is currently limited to these two routes the company is planning to add additional lines.

"We are already making plans for additional expansion into even more markets in the coming month," Greyhound President and CEO Dave Leach said.

Meanwhile, national intercity train operator Amtrak announced improved schedules on its thrice-weekly train through Houston, the New Orleans to Los Angeles Sunset Limited. The current published timetable shows the westbound train toward San Antonio, El Paso, Tucson, Ariz. and Los Angeles, Calif. leaving Houston around 10 p.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, while its eastbound counterpart toward New Orleans departs on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays around 5 a.m.

The new schedule, which takes effect this week, has the westbound train leaving Houston at 6:55 p.m. with the Friday trip moved to Saturday. Eastbound days will remain the same, but the departure time from Houston will be pushed back to 12:10 p.m. The Sunset Limited is generally one of Amtrak's least punctual performers, arriving late at its final destination about 36 percent of the time, according to the railroad.

Despite its nocturnal schedule, less-than-daily service, mediocre timekeeping and inconspicuous station at the base of Washington Avenue near Downtown, almost 20,000 people boarded or alighted in Houston last year, a seven percent increase from 2010, according to Amtrak figures. While Amtrak long-distance trains are not known for breaking land-speed records, the company markets its comfortable trains, on-board services like a dining car, affordable fares and scenic routes as reasons to choose the train.

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