jan-2018

238 239 to have ElectronicData Recorders,basicallyelectron- ic log books,installed by the end of 2017.“There are always newregulatoryand compliance issues coming up,like electronic logging,”he states.“There are some regulations pending that will deal with redesigning portions of the bus,like thewindows and the roof structure,and possibly the doors.” “I just got back from the largest bus showin the world that takes place in Belgium,everyother year,” he continues,“looking at where the rest of theworld ismoving in terms of requiring electrified vehicles op- erating on their streets.Alot of European cities,for ex- ample,aremoving quickly toward turning their transit systems into electrified transit systems.They’re getting rid of their diesel engines,andwhile that maynot hap- pen here for a long time,it’s something that’s on the radar and something that we’ll continue tomonitor. As theyeliminate diesel for transit buses,theyare also saying to the private bus industry‘we don’t want your diesel engine buses in our cityafter 2025.’It’s awayoff, but those are the things we always need to be on top of,helping to prepare the industry for what’s coming, what the responsewill be from the industryhere,and howthey’re going to copewith that huge change in theway theyoperate.” Pantuso adds that,in the coming decade,another big change for the industrywill be in thewaypeople book tickets and plan their trips.“Everybody ismoving toward that ‘Uber society’if youwill–youwant it when youwant it,where youwant it,”he says.“And themotor coach and bus industry is going to have to respond to that in some fashion,as well.We see the shift in fewer people driving,more peoplemoving into cities,and a younger generation saying‘I don’t need a driver’s li- cense,’or,if they’re living in urban centers,saying,‘I don’t need a car; but if I do need one,I’ll rent one by the hour.’Those kinds of shifts in behavior are having an impact on our industry in a positiveway,because the bus provides an extremelygood option as compared to the plane or the train,if someonewants to go from NewYork toD.C.,for example. “Also,we’ve got companies coming into themarket THE AMERICAN BUS ASSOCIATION that don’t own buses,but are crowd-sourcing buses.All of a sudden they’ve got a group of 40 peoplewho say, ‘I want to go toNewYork,tomorrow.’So,theyput a bus in service for 40 people.That kind of mindset in the waypeople travel is going to have an impact on our industry,sowe’ve got to be prepared for that and let the industryknowthat it’s coming.” Pantuso adds that theABAwill also continue towork on changing the public’s perception about themotor coach industry.“Our challenge is tomake people aware that this is not your grandfather’s bus,”he avers.“It’s not the same product; it looks different,it feels different. Myviewof the bus is a cardboard boxwithwheels. And that boxcan have anything in it and you can really let your imagination run.You can thinkabout television andmovies,WiFi,a conference room,food and bever- ages,big luxurious seats.That’s not the future; in some cases all of those things alreadyexist on the same vehicle.” Finally,Pantuso elaborates on thewider societal benefits that themotor coach industryprovides: “Not onlydoes it move people for fun,it takes people out of their cars; it reduces the carbon footprint,it connects with a lot of other modes–taxis,trains,metro buses, intercitybuses,all of that moves together,seamless- ly.And it’s a flexible system in times of need.When Katrinawent throughNewOrleans,it was the private bus industry that was able to help people.The city buses were flooded,the school buses were flooded, and therewere hundreds,if not thousands,of pri- vate buses that went down there andmoved people around.I remember during and after 9/11,when it was the private buses that weremoving people in and out of NewYorkbecause a lot of the other systems were shut down.The private bus industry is like a strategic transportation reserve–available and on duty that can be deployedwherever andwhenever.” “That’s whowe are,”Pantuso says,in summation.“In someways we’re an unsung hero.We blend into the background.People see a bus andmaynot thinkmuch about it–a big vehicle that’s inmyway.But the reality is there’s a lot more to it.”