Public transport bus service
While there are indications of experiments with public transport in Paris as early as 1662,[1][2][3] there is evidence of a scheduled "bus route" from Market Street in Manchester to Pendleton in Salford UK, started by John Greenwood in 1824.
When Baudry discovered that passengers were just as interested in getting off at intermediate points as in patronizing his baths, he changed the route's focus.
[5] A London newspaper reported on July 4, 1829, that "the new vehicle, called the omnibus, commenced running this morning from Paddington to the City", operated by George Shillibeer.
The first omnibus service in New York began in 1829, when Abraham Brower, an entrepreneur who had organized volunteer fire companies, established a route along Broadway starting at Bowling Green.
In most cases, the city governments granted a private company—generally a small stableman already in the livery or freight-hauling business—an exclusive franchise to operate public coaches along a specified route.
In 1832, the New York omnibus had a rival when the first trams, or streetcars started operation along Bowery,[6] which offered the excellent improvement in amenity of riding on smooth iron rails rather than clattering over granite setts, called "Belgian blocks".
The walk from the former village of Paddington to the business heart of London in the City was a long one, even for a young man in good condition.
Socially, the omnibus put city-dwellers, even if for only half an hour, into previously-unheard-of physical intimacy with strangers, squeezing them together knee-to-knee.
The idea of the "carriage trade", the folk who never set foot in the streets, who had goods brought out from the shops for their appraisal, has its origins in the omnibus crush.
John D. Hertz founded the Yellow Coach Manufacturing Company in 1923 and then sold a majority of shares to General Motors in 1925.
[7] This was accompanied by a continuing series of technical improvements: pneumatic "balloon" tires during the early 1920s, monocoque body construction in 1931, automatic transmission in 1936, diesel engines in 1936, 50+ passengers in 1948, and air suspension in 1953.
[8] The arrest of Rosa Parks in 1955 for not giving up her seat to a white man on a public bus is considered one of the catalysts of the Civil Rights Movement within the United States.
[9] Express buses operate on a faster schedule by not making as many stops as normal bus services and often taking quicker routes, such as along freeways, or by using dedicated lanes or roadways.
Different coach operators may band together on a franchise or connecting basis to offer a branded network that covers large distances, such as Trailways and National Express.
These are often difficult to maintain in the event of traffic congestion, breakdowns, on/off bus incidents, road blockages or bad weather.
Operators and authorities may employ on-street bus inspectors to monitor adherence in real time.
Transportation planners estimate that to support local bus service every thirty minutes, there must be a residential housing density of seven dwelling units per acre.
[11] Bus services have led to the implementation of various types of infrastructure now common in many urban and suburban settings.
Bus fleets require large storage premises often located in urban areas, and may also make use of central works facilities.
In some sectors, operators such as Megabus (both in the UK and in North America) have attempted to emulate the low-cost airlines model in order to attract passengers through low fares, by offering no-frills bus services.
Bus services are being made accessible, often in response to rules and regulations in disability discrimination laws.
This has resulted in the introduction of paratransit services and low-floor buses to support passengers who are elderly, have a disability, or a medical condition.
