How many Miles do you drive your bus each year?

[Gary Hatt - Publisher BCM]

Over-the-Road-Buses are designed and built to travel millions of miles for several years while in service with minimal maintenance.

I have heard that Greyhound ran their buses 3.5 million miles before retiring them, however, I cannot confirm that number.  I assume Trailways ran their buses about the same number of miles. Then lesser-known passenger-carrying companies buy them and put them into service, and people like you and me buy them and convert them into our own homes on wheels and travel many more miles in them.

I travel full time in my bus, but now, I spend more time sitting than traveling since the price of fuel went back up after COVID.

In 2021, I traveled 20,936 miles.
In 2022, I traveled 10,061 miles.
In 2023, I traveled 6,906 miles.

How many miles on average do you travel each year in your bus?

[luvrbus]

There a lot of bus conversion parked and for sale now,I know some owners that your 600 miles a month travel is on the high side.A bus will cost you $2.50 a mile to drive since things are so expensive now. I feel bad for Rico his tow bill was over $8.00 a mile for a 1000 mile tow with his tow insurance. My insurance agent sold out, she does not want to deal trying to insure a conversion with the changings in insurance coming in 2025 for a bus conversion.I feel for schoolie people too,they buy a old school  bus and most don't have the funds to do the repairs when needed so they park and try to survive ,dealing with the local governments is not easy either for that group 

[rusty]

We did about 12000  miles last year. Over the last 20 years we averaged about 10000 a year. The next 15 or 20 years
I hope to do some where ariund those numbers god willing. There are a lot of things that can drive the cost of driving these machines up and down the road. The ones I watch are repairs that for me have not been that big of a deal so far Knock on wood but I do alot of preventive maintenance.  Fuel is around .50 a mile now has been higher has been lower. But that can be offset if you want to drive a car and sleep in some place you know nothing about. The numbers can be said to what ever you want them to say. I say you can't put a price tag on a  good time and a good time for me is taking in alll this great county has to offer and meeting a lot of nice people along the way.

[luvrbus]

We have friends that own a 2023 H-45 Liberty I never asked what he paid don't want to know,they did one 1600 mile road trip last year he said fuel cost to much but he pays $23,000.00 a year for insurance on that bus conversion figure his cost per mile last year,I bet his license plates in AZ cost 8 thousand a year and fuel cost to much to drive

[BusNit]

I built a skoolie with a raised roof and basement storage. It was still in frame stage when someone approached me and offered to buy it. I sold it for everything I had in it except labor. I noticed the writing on the wall with jurisdictions and insurance getting tighter. I at first was told by my insurance agent that they would insure it for agreed value after it was done but they soon sent a letter that the next year they would no longer be doing insurance on conversions. Next insurance agent said they would never do full coverage only limited liability. I sold it and bought the Newell. We do about 4-6,000 miles a year on planned trips in the fall. We save fuel money in a separate account over the course of the year to cover trip. I will take it out every few months for a local drive to keep it all flexed.

[rancher]

We have friends that own a 2023 H-45 Liberty I never asked what he paid don't want to know,they did one 1600 mile road trip last year he said fuel cost to much but he pays $23,000.00 a year for insurance on that bus conversion figure his cost per mile last year,I bet his license plates in AZ cost 8 thousand a year and fuel cost to much to drive

I grew up in the fuel business in the sixty's and seven's and we were a fairly big player in our area at that time frame and these are the folks that always complained about the price of fuel. I would just walk away and shake my head. This guy spent what one million to million and half on this bus pays twenty plus grand a year on insurance and worries about the cost of fuel. LOL.

[luvrbus]

I grew up in the fuel business in the sixty's and seven's and we were a fairly big player in our area at that time frame and these are the folks that always complained about the price of fuel. I would just walk away and shake my head. This guy spent what one million to million and half on this bus pays twenty plus grand a year on insurance and worries about the cost of fuel. LOL.

I don't understand him but rich people have their little quips on somethings I guess<We did around 15,000 mile a year in our Eagle 3 trips a year to Texas you could rack up some miles

[dtcerrato]

In an Alaska year at least 15K otherwise a lot less than that. This year we'll be Alaska bound w/o our 4104 bus conversion for the 1st time.. We'll be hauling up construction materials and tools, etc. to build an addition to what we already have there. We'll be running an interior gutted 2002 GMC Bluebird 72 passenger school bus powered by a 3126 Caterpillar pulling a large tandem dump trailer loaned to us by a fellow bus nut. A late-in-life quest we hope we're up to for the task.

[lhwood]

We don't live in ours, but use it for non-profit pr work that I am involved in.  We average 8,000 to 10,000 miles a year.  Maybe that will go up as we are hoping to make a trip from Indiana to Alaska in 2024.  We enjoy busing with our family.

[Tedsoldbus]

Rancher,
You any closer to getting a bus? Quite a number for sale out there right now.

I don't know miles but this year Blairsville Ga (N Ga, home plate) to just south of Tampa for Flywheelers mini bus meet and back, Up to Johnson City Tn for an antique firetruck and old bus parade, Central Indiana for bus meet for solstice, and September to Nappanee Indiana for our once a year bus meet. Usually around 25 buses or more. Lots of cool old ones like Scenicruiser, Flxible, Silversides and others. Great time.
If interested in Nappanee let me or DTCerrato know and we can get you details.

[rancher]

Rancher,
You any closer to getting a bus? Quite a number for sale out there right now.

Ted hope all is well with you and yours. Haven't done much on the bus front. Health has been so so. Had a MH rented last summer for a month to go out west Utah, Nevada and Calif. Things came up and trip got canceled. Hoping for some better health this year.