Shuttle bus

Skybus service operating in Central Melbourne

A shuttle bus is a bus that travels a shorter route in comparsion to most bus routes. Typically shuttle buses travels in both directions between 2 points. Shuttle buses are designed to transport multiple people large groups of people who are all travelling to and from a specfic destination in a more organised manner. Shuttle buses maybe used in several occasions such as transporting unveristy students or uses as a method to transport people from airports to hotels.

Types of Shuttle Buses

Airport Bus

Main Article Airport bus

Airport Buses, Airport Shuttles, Airport Shuttle Buses are buses that travel between the airport and the City centre. These buses mainly travel to major transit hubs however may also travel to directly to major hotels around the city. Buses that travel directly to the city can sometimes be refered to as Hotel Shuttles.

University Shuttles

Unversity Shuttles are buses that travel between the campus area and may sometimes serve major transport hubs and railway stations. Unversity shuttles that operate within the campus are mainly designed to serve larger campuses that may not allowed public road access. Not only do these shuttles cut down transportation times between two ends of the campus they also allow students to travel safely during the night through dark places. Unveristy shuttles also tend to operate out of regular operational hours for regular bus services.

Rail Replacement Buses

Main Article Rail replacement bus service

Rail Replacement buses are buses that opererate when a particular train line is down. These services are usually run public bus services however in some cases may also hire additional buses and for long distance services will use regional coaches. These services tend to gain negative reception as they lack many of the benefits that trains have over buses.

Employee Shuttles

Employee Shuttles are buses that are used to transport employees between their homes and workplaces, sometimes these shuttles also may be used to transport people within workplaces. These employee shuttles have shown to have benefits such as easing daily commuters of workers. Many employers are also using employee shuttle buses as an alternative to personal cars in order to reduce emmissions produced by the company and their employees.

Community Transport

Main Article Paratransit

Community Transport (British English) or Paratransit (North American English) are shuttle buses designed to transport those with disabilities and other people who are struggling to get around. Community transit is often designed to be accesible for those in wheelchairs by offering additional features that may not always be present on regular buses. These extra features include special equipment, ramps and additional wheelchair areas.

History of Shuttle Buses

Due the COVID-19 pandemic and the Russo-Ukrainian War during 2020 and 2022 the demand for air travel and airport buses had declined. Despite this the demand for airport buses is projected to increase in the next 5 years due to the predicted rise of air travel and demand for cleaner forms of transport. During the end of COVID-19 many people were accustomed to working at home, as a result many companies began to use employee shuttles as a tool to bring people back into the workspace.

Shuttle Buses Around the World

Australia

In Australia shuttle buses are used to transport students from transport hubs (such as Train stations or Bus stations) to their respective universities. In Melbourne several of these operate the most used of these being 601 which transports students from Huntingdale station to Monash University, Clayton campus. In Brisbane the most popular shuttle is route 134 that transports students from Queen Street bus station via Griffith University Mount Gravatt campus to Griffith University Nathan campus. Typically these university shuttles are express and will only serve education precincts or major stops along the route. These buses also tend to have a special livery signifying what unversity they serve. Shuttle buses in Australia may also be used to connect airports and their respective city centres, an example of this is Melbourne's SkyBus which connects Melbourne Airport to Southern Cross Station in Melbourne's CBD. The Kinetic subsidary also operates airport shuttles in several cities across Australia such as Hobart.

France

Roissy Bus at Opera Station

In France shuttle buses are used commonly used to connect airports and their respective city centres, the most used of these the Roissy bus service from Charles de Gaulle Airport and central Paris. Paris' Roissy bus operates from terminal 2 at Charles de Gaulle Airport to Opéra Station on the Paris Métro.

United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom shuttle buses operate at Airports as well as connecting Universities to local areas. One example of this is the Hotel Hoppa service that travels from Heathrow Airport to several nearby hotels. In the UK there are also many shuttle buses that serve and their nearby area Campuses. For example Oxford Bus Company operates the science transit shuttle, shuttle between University of Oxford and across the surrounding town area.

United States

In the United States shuttle buses are used to transport users from airports and city centres. One of the most used of these is the FlyAway bus service connecting Los Angeles and Los Angeles International Airport, this service connects Union Station (Los Angeles) with Los Angeles International airport.