Prof. Howard Weiss has developed the Excel OM, POM, and Active Model software that comes free with our text.
The Location chapter (Ch. 8) of your Heizer/Render/Munson textbook discusses the location of a new facility but a related question is the closing of a current facility. Figure 8.1 lists as its first factor for determining the site as : “size and cost”.
Recently, Greyhound has decided that one way to reduce costs is to close its bus terminals. It has closed terminals in Philadelphia, Knoxville, Louisville and Houston, where riders are dropped off and picked up at the curb; in Tampa where riders are dropped off in a parking lot; and in Columbus which now uses a public bus terminal.
Of course, curbside or parking lot usage leads to a number of difficulties for passengers. In many cases there is no shade, no heat or air conditioning, no food, no place to sit, nor any restrooms. In addition, buses idling at the curb takes away a lane for cars or bikes. There are several reasons that bus terminals are being closed.
Relocation Often times a facility will be closed because it is being relocated to another location. This is true in some cases for Greyhound which recently moved its downtown Cincinnati station to the suburbs. This relocation did hurt riders who needed a more central location.
Condition of Terminal In midtown Houston the Greyhound bus station is an old, dilapidated station and for sale. However, the area around the station is improving, as new apartment buildings, restaurants, bars and grocers open.
Property value One main reason for leaving the bus terminals is to sell the properties which have become very valuable. In addition to Houston, the Louisville site will be turned into a 256 unit apartment complex. In Chicago, which serves 500,000 passengers each year and 55 busses per day, the station is for sale, with no replacement in the plans.
One stated reason for closure of terminals is because there will be a new bus terminal. But in Louisville construction has not started on the new terminal, even though the old terminal is closed. Greyhound is not alone. In Minneapolis, the Uptown Transit Station closed months ago and a facility will not reopen until Spring 2024. The station has been beset with vandalism, drug use and other activities which make it unsafe.
Classroom Discussion Questions:
1. How can bus terminals be made safer?
2. What other facilities have been sold due to the value of the land?