Motorcoaches were lined up on the show floor at the Chauffeur Driven/National Limousine Association (CD/NLA) Show in Las Vegas this week. But getting them in there was no small feat. In fact, it took some pretty precise driving skills – and the help of spotters at the front and back – to maneuver these 45-foot-long vehicles into a hall designed more for accommodating limos and town cars.
It was a little like threading a needle, if your thread was 8 feet wide and cleared the doorways with just inches to spare on either side. To add just a little more pressure, all this fancy footwork and steering was done in front of an audience.
It was a “very tight squeeze” as coaches navigated into the space at the Paris Hotel-Las Vegas where the convention was held March 27-30, observed Scott Michael, President and CEO of the United Motorcoach Association.
There was a lot of interest in the coaches, according to Michael, who heard from several limo operators who indicated they are seeing opportunities to expand their operations to include motorcoaches due to the reduction in motorcoach operators in their markets, and many already operate full coaches.
Prevost was among the OEMs taking part in the show.
“The Prevost team was very pleased with both the volume of attendees and their engagement. Many had interest in both our Prevost and Volvo offerings, and it was exciting to hear stories of pandemic recovery a lot of attendees are experiencing. This industry is now growing and poised for a positive future.” Brad Wiese, VP of North American Sales for Prevost
Michael, representing UMA, presented at the NLA’s Association Summit, providing industry background including its challenges with driver recruitment, drug testing, interstate compliance audits and other concerns.
He also talked about how UMA’s anti-broker service BusRates is helping connect customers with operators of various types of equipment. Other associations discussed airport access issues, electrification grant programs to assist fleets in converting to alternative fuels, and ways to recruit members.
As the four-day convention wound down, Michael noted the significant cultural differences between the limousine industry and the motorcoach industry.
“Limousine operators are very focused on branding their companies to attract business, referring to their drivers as ‘chauffeurs’ and projecting an image of the type of experience their customers will receive,” Michael said.
Limo operators appear to use this enhanced customer expectation to help drive pricing.
Michael noted the limo industry’s focus on networking to build relationships with other companies around the country who can help out with business in other cities also was shared with motorcoach operators.
“As we see more and more limousine companies diversifying their fleets to service customers with larger needs, we will see more of them joining the motorcoach industry and UMA. At the same time, motorcoach operators are also diversifying fleets, resulting in more direct competition for wedding business and other areas,” he said.
Related:
BusRates unveils new tool to make chartering a motorcoach easier
