Moser says a quarter of Megabus's passengers are unaccompanied women. In surveys the company conducted before its Chicago launch, women consistently said they were excited by the prospect of not having to drive or park downtown and of visiting the city at a price that left them with more money to spend on shopping or theater or meals. But this group also proved especially averse to the idea of a bus depot. For them and others, a street-side stop transformed the bus into an entirely different mode of travel. "Would I want my daughter or my wife in a bus terminal by themselves? I'd say no," Moser says. "We're creating new bus customers and a different demographic."
Maybe this is just a company exec. trying to a spin a negative into a positive, but are bus terminals in major cities so scary and horrible that having no shelter or amenities while you wait is preferable? I mean, I've been in bus terminals and for whatever reason they aren't always the greatest places in the universe, but...