Thirty Hours on Megabus: St. Louis to Memphis to Little Rock to Dallas & Back
Two week ago I arrived in Dallas for a workshop & conference. I left St. Louis at 3:40pm Monday, arriving at 7:35am Tuesday morning. Amtrak? Drive? Greyhound? No, Megabus. I last wrote about Megabus in August, see My First Trip Via Megabus. At that time the official stop was just a spot on 14th between Spruce & Clark. Now Megabus uses one of Greyhound’s bays at the Gateway Transportation Center — a huge improvement.
Departing & arriving inside a building with food & restrooms is so much nicer than just a spot next to the road. At just before 4pm in the afternoon it isn’t a big deal — assuming it isn’t raining. But in a couple of weeks we’ll be leaving just after midnight for a trip to Chicago. It’s the middle of the night when a building makes a difference — especially in a strange city.
But when your conference stipend covers your hotel for four nights sometimes sacrifices must be made. My roundtrip was $32.50 — purchased about a month in advance. Airfare & Amtrak were both in the hundreds, renting a car would’ve been just as costly. Flying or driving wouldn’t have allowed me to have my power wheelchair, not a good option in this case.
— Steve Patterson