As students without their own transportation join the national scramble to get home for the holidays, two University students have taken matters into their own hands. The bus trip to Portland may never be the same.
A new charter service exclusively offers University students a round-trip shuttle to two locations in the Portland area. Dubbed “Better Bus,” the independent business is the recently founded brainchild of University seniors Jered Parkin and Jonah Fruchter. A one-way ticket costs students $25 and a round-trip will set riders back $45. The service offers complimentary milk and cookies and a movie for riders.
Parkin and Fruchter are approaching the business world with a sense of humor.
The first flick to be shown on the Thanksgiving trip, “Speed,” is a 1994 action movie about a bus hijacking, Fruchter said.
The service is set to make its inaugural trips, what Fruchter calls their “maiden voyage,” for the Thanksgiving and winter breaks. As of Sunday, there are eight students signed up for the Thanksgiving trip, Parkin said.
University freshman and Portland native Garrett McAleese, who first heard about Better Bus through a Facebook advertisement, said the service is a good alternative for students who don’t want to use other transportation services.
“I thought it was a cool idea,” he said. “I’ve been on the Greyhound and the train, and they’re kind of scary. I think it would be more fun to go up with a bunch of students.”
Bus service Greyhound Lines offers the same trip for $21.75 one way and $40.50 round trip. Though the Greyhound trip is slightly less expensive, Fruchter said, Better Bus is a more student-friendly option, and it makes up for the price difference with complimentary food and added convenience.
“The benefit of this is that it picks you up on campus,” Fruchter said. “No other bus company does that.”
McAleese said he might get a ride home for Thanksgiving with a friend, but he would likely use Better Bus as his next option if that fell through.
“That’s what’s been fun about doing this business,” Parkin said. “It’s not like we’re trying to sell somebody something. We have something that we think is valuable, and we’re not trying to twist anybody’s leg. It feels nice in that sense, that we’re not trying to run some kind of scam.”
Neither Parkin nor Fruchter said they had any prior experience operating a business, although Parkin is majoring in business with a focus in accounting. Fruchter studies political science at the University.
“I had just no idea of what to expect,” Fruchter said, adding that he had learned a lot from the experience.
“It’s a problem solving effort, and there’s just so many different elements to it,” Fruchter said. “There’s so many different kinds of knowledge that you get to pick up, in terms of advertising and people interaction.”
The two have been organizing the operation since the beginning of the school year, but only began advertising last week, they said.
That has meant handing out flyers on campus and near residence halls, using Facebook flyers, putting up posters and launching its own Web site, www.uobetterbus.com, Parkin said. The idea has been generally well received because of its practical use for students, he said.
Fruchter said one of the biggest problems they have encountered is not being able to advertise directly in the residence halls because of the nature of their business.
Lou Vijayakar, assistant director of residence life at University Housing, said any business that is run for profit is not allowed to advertise in the residence halls, regardless of whether it is student run or not. She said only non-profit organizations and student groups are allowed to post flyers.
Business professor Alan Meyer said any student business has a hard time because it doesn’t have an established reputation.
“They need to convince students that this is for real, that if they make the plans, they won’t miss Thanksgiving dinner,” he said. “The biggest thing they have to overcome is that they have no visibility, no brand, no credibility.”
Meyer said he had seen several student businesses emerge in his more than 20 years at the University. And though only a few of them were successful, he said, the risk is generally lower for students if the operation fails.
“I think it’s a great time to try,” Meyer said.
Parkin said he was encouraged by the response so far, and would continue the service if the demand is there. He also said he would consider expanding it to other stops in cities along the way.
“The cool thing about this business is that you start very small, and then it has the potential to get huge,” he said.
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