Sleeper bus

[Mk1dreamer]

Do you ever see sleeper buses being a thing over here ? I seen ones in America and they look reasonable and comfortable honestly

 

[JonathanH]

Do you ever see sleeper buses being a thing over here ? I seen ones in America and they look reasonable and comfortable honestly

They were a thing. Stagecoach ran sleeper services initially under the Megabus brand with a bendy coach with 24 passenger 'shelves' and 24 seats, then under the Megabus Gold brand with double deck coaches laid out with beds.

They couldn't make it pay, and because the coaches were used with seats on day services, they racked up huge mileages which led to the coaches needing replacement.

See https://www.bbc.com/news/business-15392176 for the first era from 2011.

Stagecoach has just launched a new Megabus sleeper service between London and Glasgow, seven days a week in both directions.

Each 60 foot bendy-bus is equipped with 24 bunks in stacks of three. There are 24 seats too, so you don't have to get into bed the moment you get on board. Stagecoach has been running trial runs of the service over the past few months, diverting passengers from the regular bus to see what they think.

The company says it had to iron out some air-conditioning problems initially, but that passengers said overwhelmingly that they would be prepared to pay for a bed on a bus and so three specially-equipped vehicles have been put into service.

The problem with the bendy bus version was that the 'bunk' compartments developed a somewhat stuffy smell. It also only had capacity for 24 passengers.

What there isn't very much of in each bunk, is headroom, and while they are long enough for all but the very tallest passengers, they can be a little awkward to get into.

Once in the bunk though, the ride is as smooth as on any other motorway journey. We were diverted early on in our journey on the M1 and the bed can roll you around somewhat on smaller roads, but once back to the usual undulation of a British motorway it was comfortable enough.

As for the 2013 incarnation, see https://www.railforums.co.uk/threads/megabus-gold.82816/

Realistically people who want to travel by coach overnight are happy with a reclining seat.

 

[Mk1dreamer]

They were a thing. Stagecoach ran sleeper services initially under the Megabus brand with a bendy coach with 24 passenger 'shelves' and 24 seats, then under the Megabus Gold brand with double deck coaches laid out with beds.

They couldn't make it pay, and because the coaches were used with seats on day services, they racked up huge mileages which led to the coaches needing replacement.

See https://www.bbc.com/news/business-15392176 for the first era from 2011.


The problem with the bendy bus version was that the 'bunk' compartments developed a somewhat stuffy smell. It also only had capacity for 24 passengers.


Realistically people who want to travel by coach overnight are happy with a reclining seat.

Yeah I didn't know that, I honestly thought it would be more popular

 

[overthewater]

Its a shame the concept never took off, but I still believe the layout on the bendy coaches was a better design, im still confused why they need those 24 seats, just make it all bunks.

This wasn't the first time the UK had this concept it was done back in the 50s wasn't it?

 

[JonathanH]

Its a shame the concept never took off, but I still believe the layout on the bendy coaches was a better design, im still confused why they need those 24 seats, just make it all bunks.

My recollection was that the bunks in the bendy coaches were arranged three bunks high, two sets of six in the front part of the coach, and one set of six in the 'trailer', and were very tight to access. The bottom bunk was basically on the floor. Expecting passengers to stay in those bunks for the whole journey would have been a little restricting.

The air circulation just didn't get into the cubicles.

 

[Mk1dreamer]

What was the bunk size roughly ?

 

[JonathanH]

What was the bunk size roughly ?

There is a video in the BBC link I posted.

 

[GusB]

This wasn't the first time the UK had this concept it was done back in the 50s wasn't it?

Was it? Would you mind providing further information?

 

[Russel]

I tried the Stagecoach Megabus Gold incarnation of the London - Glasgow sleeper coach not long before the service ended, I'd booked it both ways but couldn't face the return journey so got the train!

 

[trainmania100]

I remember a while back on TV seeing this film with a triple decker bus. There were people sleeping but obviously the size was the problem, you couldn't get many beds in. Obviously bridge height etc probably why it didn't work out

 

[Buzby]

Here’s the non-bendy Stagecoach, currently located in Glasgow - after the service ceased, the bunks were removed and used for tourist events in Edinburgh until retired.

 

[t rex]

Sf13fmp still about with bunks still fitted currently with am2pm near bristol

 

[TheGrandWazoo]

The reason why Megabus Gold didn't succeed is simply economics

The cost of running a coach is £x. You can run it with 24 fare payers (with bunks) or 48 fare payers. To make the same money, you have to charge the bunk passengers more money. However, coach travel is very price sensitive so the majority of passengers won't pay twice as much in general. That, and the experience isn't that great.

It's one of the reasons why Greyhound failed (but not the only one). People say that "yes, I'd pay extra for more legroom etc" but most coach passengers don't.

 

[overthewater]

Was it? Would you mind providing further information?

Looks like it started even further back, in the 1920s.

* https://archive.commercialmotor.com/article/21st-august-1928/11/sleeping-in-a-sleeper-coach
* https://archive.commercialmotor.com.../5/a-new-sleeper-coach-service-from-newcastle

I'm sure they tried it again in the 1950s.

 

[JonathanH]

The reason why Megabus Gold didn't succeed is simply economics

Yes, although the fact that the day services using the same coaches didn't work, and the coaches were run too intensively didn't help with the overall economics.

 

[RT4038]

The reason why Megabus Gold didn't succeed is simply economics

The cost of running a coach is £x. You can run it with 24 fare payers (with bunks) or 48 fare payers. To make the same money, you have to charge the bunk passengers more money. However, coach travel is very price sensitive so the majority of passengers won't pay twice as much in general. That, and the experience isn't that great.

It's one of the reasons why Greyhound failed (but not the only one). People say that "yes, I'd pay extra for more legroom etc" but most coach passengers don't.

Plus the practical need to run them 'crew' (2 persons) and the costs of their accommodation at the far terminal before returning the next night. The vehicles were very heavy (because of the bed/ seat change mechanism) which pushed costs up. The comparison is between an 87 seat fully seated coach decker or 41 on a sleeper coach decker. As you quite rightly say, passengers were prepared to pay premium, but not a sufficient one to cover the additional costs.

An bold and interesting experiment, but doomed in the end.

 

[ScotsRail]

My recollection was that the bunks in the bendy coaches were arranged three bunks high, two sets of six in the front part of the coach, and one set of six in the 'trailer', and were very tight to access. The bottom bunk was basically on the floor. Expecting passengers to stay in those bunks for the whole journey would have been a little restricting.

The air circulation just didn't get into the cubicles.

I did it once and had a bottom bunk - as someone who is 6'3 it was virtually impossible to get into without sticking my backside up in the air or lying on the floor and rolling in!! The bunk was so enclosed that I started to get claustrophobic and by the border I was in the seated area as that was far more comfortable.

Not something I recommended to anyone.

 

[route101]

I used the first Megabus sleeper on the bendy bus. I was on the bottom bunk which was on the floor, felt bumps on the road. I recall there was a seated portion at the front. Even paid £1 for the trip.