The new double-deckers are only 18 inches taller than a regular bus, but this height difference means they can't maneuver inside South Station, where Megabus.com has been based for nearly a year, so the double-deckers will operate out of Back Bay Station. The 13-foot-1-inch buses drop off passengers at Penn Station in New York.
Double-deckers are common in Europe, but Megabus.com, a subsidiary of Coach USA, is the only North American company using them for city-to-city travel, said Dale Moser, chief operating officer. Megabus plans to convert its entire fleet, built by the Belgian company Van Hool, to double-deckers by September.
The change makes sense both economically and environmentally: The bigger buses carry more people, don't require additional drivers, and use less gas.
"It becomes a much more environmentally friendly vehicle," said Moser, who added the double-decker buses are four times more efficient than standard buses.
The buses can also be exciting for passengers, said New York University graduate student Denise Birkhofer, who rode a double-decker Megabus on the way back from a trip to Philadelphia to visit art museums last month. It sounded fun, she said, "like having a little piece of London." She sat on the top floor, and she wasn't disappointed.
Not only was it comfortable, but because of the big window in front, she said, "It was kind of like being on a roller coaster."
In Boston, the double-deckers will keep the same schedule, departing from Boston 11 times a day, increasing the capacity of the already well-served route by 275 people a day. The double-deckers leaving from Boston will have the same price structure as the standard Megabus.com coaches have - the prices, which currently range between $1 and $18 one-way, go up as the buses fill up closer to the departure date. As of yesterday afternoon, Boston passengers could book a next-day round-trip ticket from Boston to New York for as little as $15.50. Friday and Saturday trips could be purchased for as little as $28.50.
