Drivers and vehicles — those are the two essential ingredients in our business. We take drivers and vehicles, and together, we move people.
Much of my focus in Ground Transportation Insights has been on the people side of the business. That’s intentional — people are the more complex part of the equation. But equipment — whether motorcoaches, transits, minibuses, school buses, cutaways, sprinter vans, or SUVs — plays an equally important role in how effectively we deliver service.
Over the years, I’ve managed fleets of just about everything: MCIs, Prevosts, Van Hools, Setras (the predecessor to Mercedes-Benz coaches), Gilligs, and New Flyers on the transit side. I’ve run fleets filled with nearly every upfitter on the mini/cutaway platform, as well as sprinters, transits, and Chevy Suburbans. I even had a few Blue Bird school buses for a shuttle route at one point.
Most of these fleets were inherited, which meant learning each brand’…
