CHICAGO A group of university researchers say intercity bus ridership is growing at its fastest rate in 50 years, presaging a possible resurgence in bus travel.

According to the research conducted by the Chaddick Institute for Metropolitan Development at DePaul University here, the number of scheduled line runs across the nation has increased about 13 percent in the past 23 months.

Much of the increase, say the researchers, is attributable to new players entering the field, notably megasbus.com and the ethnic operators on both coasts, but there also has been an increase in the number of routes and departures offered by established regional carriers.

Even industry leader Greyhound is seeing a rebound.

In addition to more companies offering intercity service than at any time in the past 20 years, the DePaul researchers think the increase also may be fueled by a growing number of travelers who are fed up with the hassle of commercial flying; growing environmental consciousness; increased amenities on coaches, including movies and Internet service, and perhaps even the price of gasoline.

Or, say the authors, perhaps it's just "because the beleaguered intercity bus industry just couldn't fall any further."

Study is available

Whatever the reason, the intercity sector is seeing a surge in growth for the first time in more than 40 years, according to the research.

The institute published the results in a study, called "The Return of the Intercity Bus: The Decline and Recovery of schedule Service to American Cities, 1960-2007," and posted it on its Website, www.depaul.edu/~chaddick, along with a two-page news release highlighting the findings.

"Obviously, the intercity bus industry suffered from a reputation as the travel means of last resort for many years," said Joe Schwieterman, a professor of public service at DePaul and executive director of the Chaddick Institute.

"But with more upscale coaches being put into service with amenities like larger seats and on-board movies, the companies have started to close the gap on other modes of travel," said Schwieterman.

In fact, says Schwieterman, the gains of the past two years may be the first sign of a renaissance for intercity buses, which were a key mode of transportation in most U.S. cities during the first half of the 20th century.

The painful decline

That changed in the 1960s with the coming of the Interstate system, which was quickly followed by the exodus of residents from city centers to the suburbs. Cars became king, diminishing the need for buses.

As a result, U.S. cities lost nearly one-third of their scheduled intercity service between 1960 and 1980 and more than 60 percent of the remaining services between 1980 and 2005, the study said.

Now, the tide is turning, says Schwieterman, who gives much of the credit to the new players, like www.megabus.com, which was launched in Chicago last year.

The company has served more than 700,000 riders since April 2006, most of whom are young professionals, older women with children and so-called "silver surfers" -- retirees who like the independence of traveling by bus, said Dale Moser, president and CEO of Coach USA, parent company of megabus.com.

At Greyhound, per-bus passenger loads are 15 percent to 20 percent higher than they were before the company began reorganizing its network 3 1/2 years ago, said a company spokesman.

Schwieterman says the growth spurt is a sign the bus industrys image is improving with the American public. But he said its doubtful Greyhound and other carriers will ever fully recover from their decades-long slump. "It's a long road ahead," he cautioned.