KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — When the pandemic hit in 2020, Premier Transportation made the difficult decision to close its location in Tennessee’s Tri-Cities.
Like many in the charter motor coach industry, the company was forced to scale back in the face of travel restrictions and canceled group trips.
Five years later, Premier is returning to the region — this time with a permanent home and a larger footprint.
“We have had a lot to be thankful for with Premier the last few years, post-pandemic,” said Taylor Thomas, the company’s general manager. “We’ve experienced good growth and really built the company up.”
The new 7,000-square-foot facility, scheduled to open in 2026, will sit on a 2½-acre site near the I-26/I-81 interchange — a prime location Thomas said is “where you’d want to be if you were going to build a bus company there.”
The site will feature three service bays, a dedicated indoor wash bay, and capacity for 15 to 20 motorcoaches.
More coaches and employees
The expansion will add 15 motorcoaches to Premier’s 52-vehicle fleet and is expected to create more than 35 jobs. The company currently employs about 90 people with existing locations in Knoxville and Chattanooga.
“For the last three years, Premier has wanted to get back into that market and was looking for the right building or land. That’s what we found with this piece of property.”
The Tri-Cities market — made up of Bristol, Johnson City, and Kingsport — will be served directly by Premier from its Knoxville location, which often required additional drivers for long-haul school trips to destinations like Washington and New York.
“This will allow for smoother operations for the Tri City market and also be more cost-effective for Premier’s clients,” Thomas said.
Premier serves a mix of universities, church groups, and tour companies, operating exclusively with Van Hool coaches. It is a member of the International Motorcoach Group.
