Megabus

Had a fare for Columbus-​Chicago on the 25^th May (Memorial Day). The bus was supposed to leave at 1030 from Columbus. We waited an hour and 15 minutes. We called multiple times. Customer service, while friendly, was entirely unhelpful as they had no idea what the status of the bus was. The standard reply was, «We do not have status on that bus…» and to call back either in 15 or 30 minutes. I had half a mind of asking them whether the bus was in Africa or in the USA. Don’t the drivers carry cell phones? Is there really no way of knowing where the bus is? Or does The Megabus live in the dark ages?

I am just cutting and pasting my letter to customer service because I swear to God if I have to type out everything they just put me through again I will set fire to the rain.
I want to preface this by saying that I have never complained or asked for a refund for ANYTHING in my life before. It really takes a lot. Megabus has helped me learn just how much I have to go through to get to that point, so thanks I guess.
I purchased a roundtrip ticket from Buffalo to Columbus. The trip up was nice. I was even sort of looking forward to the trip back so I could relax and read. I arrived at the bus stop at 1:15 for my 1:45 bus today. At 130ish another bus showed up. It wasn’t a megabus. It was a Lakefront Lines bus. There were about 30 people at the bus stop. About ten got on the bus. Then it pulled away at 1:40. Everyone else at the bus stop, myself included didn’t give it a second thought, because it left before 1:45 and it wasn’t a megabus so SURELY it wasn’t the bus to Buffalo.
At 1:55 I called and spoke with customer service. The woman that answered said that my bus had left at 1:59. I said «Uh it’s 1:55». She said «Oh haha that’s right. It left at 1:42. I said «from what stations?» and she named a different stations that was located not in Columbus. I was confused but sort of relieved I didn’t miss my bus. They assured me the megabus was still on its way to pick us up and they asked me to call back in fifteen minutes.
Fifteen minutes later I called. The man that answered said he didn’t know anything and asked that I called in fifteen minutes. I politely explained that the last person said that and could I speak to a supervisor. He said there was no supervisor that could help me. I began to get worried at that point. I said: «Is my bus coming?» He said: «yes» I said «Am I going to be able to get to Buffalo tonight via Megabus?» He said: «yes» I said: «Do you promise?» He said «yes». Then he hung up.
I called back in fifteen minutes. The woman that answered said the bus left and that it was a Lakefront Lines bus. I asked why the bus left early, why the driver didn’t tell us he was in place of megabus, and how me and the twenty other people it left behind are going to get to Buffalo. She couldn’t answer any of those questions. I asked if she could transfer my reservation to the 1:45am bus, because if I took it I would be exhausted but at least I would be able to get to work tomorrow. She said I had to buy a new ticket. I explained that megabus really screwed up and that I had already spoken to numerous people and I need the reservation transferred. She said «Im sorry.»
I need a refund on that ticket. Megabus screwed up really badly. Their customer service lied to me a couple times, and seemed to only be available to placate me with empty statements or to tell me to call back later (in the hopes that someone else would answer the call so they wouldnt have to deal with me I am assuming.)
If I do not receive a refund on this ticket I am going to contact the Better Business Bureau and explain how megabus misrepresented themself (I will tell them that I was told I would have a megabus and not a Lakefront Lines bus and all the amenities I paid for that I would not have received on the Lakefront Lines bus, which isn’t terribly important to me, but I will make as much trouble as humanly possible in the hopes that it will make me feel «squared up».
If I do not get I will do everything in my power to make sure that NO ONE in Buffalo continues to use megabus. I know a lot of people and I have a big social media presence and I will exhaust every single opportunity I have to let everyone know how poorly I was treated.
I am missing a very important day of work tomorrow, I am wasting a vacation day, I have to shell out a ridiculous amount of money to make sure someone can last minute take care of my dogs, I have to pay for another night at a hotel, and I am really angry.
It’s not that I even care about the twenty five dollars, its that I need to feel like someone at megabus gives a shit. Your customer service lied to me and gave me the run around, your driver (or Lakefront Lines driver or whatever) literally left twenty people at that stop because he couldn’t be bothered to say «Im here for megabus», and NO ONE I have spoken to yet has given me anything close to a resolution.

This would’ve been a 4 star before the location change. Instead of the middle of arena district with high foot traffic and safety location, Megabus is now in a location with 0 traffic on the northeast central\east side of downtown. I’ve felt physically unsafe walking to the location late at night. Please bring back the old stop in front of Nationwide.

Pros: I made 9 new friends in a rental van
Cons: Everything else
The skinny: Megabus has no contingency plan for broken down buses. It’s like they never expected this to happen in their wildest dreams.
You certainly get what you pay for. I have taken Megabus a handful of times and it seems that it’s a crap shoot, or it’s
going quickly downhill.
My first few times went off without a hitch but my trip last February from Columbus to Cincinnati was delayed over 45 minutes. The other passengers and I were waiting on the curb in the snow for the bus without any word on its delay.
However, the reason for this review is my experience yesterday. I took the Megabus from Chicago to Columbus. We broke down in Indianapolis due to an oil leak. Many of the passengers getting off in Indy just got off and walked home because we were given no reassurance that the problem would be resolved. There was oil all over the back of the bus.
Some Megabus responses to our problems:
«They said they would send someone in an hour and a half (after already waiting for an hour) but there are no guarantees. You may want to get a hotel.» –the driver
«We will respond to your email in 5 days» –response from Megabus support
«I’ll be back in an hour with some oil. I’ll put that in and see what happens but there are no guarantees» –Repair man, after getting there over 2 hours after we broke down
«We have dispatched a new bus and it will be there in 60 minutes» –Megabus email after being broken down for 4 hours
Myself and 9 other passengers did not stay to see how this story ended. We rented a van and drove back to Columbus ourselves.

Best way to get to Chicago from Columbus! Book a month or so in advance, and fares are often $ 25 or less. I prefer upper deck, and rarely have to share my seat with another passenger. Don’t count on wifi, as it doesn’t always work. Get there early. Buses are almost always on time, and boarding often starts 10 min before scheduled departure.