The Internet can be a funny place. If you’re searching online for a “bus charter”, “charter buses”, “rental bus” or to “charter a bus”, the likelihood is that the first search results will be online bus charter directories. These directories claim to allow you to “bypass the middleman” or avoid price markups for services. However, using these directories for your ground transportation needs does carry a degree of risk.
The difference between Metropolitan Shuttle and a bus charter directory is that Metropolitan Shuttle routinely reviews the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Federal Motorcarrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) safety and registration information on every vehicle we charter. Bus directories are just that — directories. Like phone books, the online bus directories will give you names and contact information, but they are not quality-based resources. Unless you’re willing and able to spend significant time doing thorough research in federal databases, it’s difficult to determine which companies’ buses are safe and which aren’t. Here at Metropolitan Shuttle, we have that information at our fingertips and we use it every day. We ensure that none of our vehicles has unsatisfactory or conditional ratings; if a vehicle or company’s rating suddenly dips, we’ll immediately substitute a comparable vehicle so that your passengers’ safety is always assured.
We are constantly vetting our vendors to ensure that those companies with which we work have no negative safety ratings. Unlike a bus directory, companies whose ratings are lower than they should be are simply not included in Metropolitan Shuttle’s databases.
Finally, while directories may be claiming to save you money if you go directly through a bus charter service, that’s not entirely accurate. The bus companies need to pay a fee to be included in the directory; the ones with “prime” advertising space like banner ads are paying even more substantially. Those advertising costs are going to be folded into the prices that they charge consumers — they would have to be. At Metropolitan Shuttle, what you see is what you get. When you request a quote, your account executive will get all of the details from you and give you an exact price for service, even if it involves multiple trips over a lengthy period of time. You’ll know up front exactly how much you’ll pay for your transportation services.
There’s nothing more important to you than the safety of your passengers, and that’s the highest priority at Metropolitan Shuttle, as well. Let us do the research for you to ensure a safe, comfortable ride wherever your group needs to go.
