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Van Galder Bus Company

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Van Galder Bus Company
Van Galder motorcoach in downtown Chicago
ParentCoach USA
Founded1947 [1]
Headquarters715 South Pearl Street
LocaleJanesville, Wisconsin
DestinationsMadison and Janesville, Wisconsin, South Beloit and Rockford, Illinois to Chicago (O'Hare, Union Station)
Fleet150[2]
OperatorSam Van Galder Inc.
Chief executiveAllen Fugate
Websiteat Coach USA

Van Galder Bus Company, legally Sam Van Galder, Inc. is a regional bus service headquartered in Janesville, Wisconsin. A subsidiary of Coach USA, the company had been a family-owned business for over 50 years until it was sold in 1999 to the Stagecoach Group, who retained Stephen Van Galder as president under the Coach USA banner. In 2004, Van Galder acquired Rockford Coach Lines, which provided airport service from Rockford to O'Hare, from Greyhound Lines.[3]

The company operates school buses for the Janesville School district, coach and school bus charters, tour and travel excursions, daily airport shuttles, Amtrak Thruway service to downtown Chicago, and the only intercity service on the I-39/90 corridor.[1] The company has bus terminals in Janesville and Rockford. It picks up curbside in Madison on North Lake Street and at the Dutch Mill Park and Ride and has two pick-ups in Rockford, one on Walton Street for O'Hare customers and one on N. Lyford Street for downtown Chicago customers. However, all buses currently only stop at the Rockford terminal on Walton Street. Service to Chicago Midway Airport was suspended March 17, 2020, and there are no plans to reinstate it.

The corridor served by Van Galder's regularly scheduled service is from:

to

In September, 2009, the company started double-decker bus service on the route between Madison and downtown Chicago.[4][5]

In June 2024, Coach USA filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, blaming corporate impact caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The company has plans to sell its assets, and plans to sell its Megabus subsidiaries (including Van Galder) to Bus Company Holdings, a unit of the Renco Group.[6]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Coach USA, Van Galder - about us
  2. ^ The Business Journal: Rising diesel costs force industry changes
  3. ^ "Stagecoach Group PLC and Coach USA, Inc., et al.-Acquisition and Consolidation of Assets-Rockford Coach Lines, L.L.C." Federal Register. May 14, 2004. Retrieved October 16, 2019.
  4. ^ Karen Rivedal (September 9, 2009). "Van Galder to start double-decker bus service in Madison". Wisconsin State Journal. Retrieved October 3, 2009.
  5. ^ "Chicago Airport Shuttle Bus Schedules". www.govangalder.com. Retrieved September 21, 2018.
  6. ^ "Coach USA files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Delaware". Bloomberg Law. June 11, 2024. Retrieved June 11, 2024.
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