WASHINGTON — The United Motorcoach Association has filed a charter service complaint with the Federal Transit Administration alleging the Potomac Valley Transit Authority violated federal rules by providing transportation for Potomac State College without notifying registered private charter operators.
According to the complaint, the charter service to transport Potomac State’s baseball team to Allegany College of Maryland had originally been assigned to Budget Charters.
“The current rule has worked remarkably well since its inception in 2008, a result of a Charter Bus Negotiated Rulemaking Committee that consisted of representatives from the private sector and transit community,” said Ken Presley, UMA’s vice president of legislative and regulatory affairs and industry relations and chief operating officer. “The clarification of what is and is not charter brought clarity to a rule that has been in effect since 1973 in one form or another.”
Presley said the association often attempts to resolve disputes informally before filing complaints.
“When we have a heads-up that a charter is about to happen that is likely a violation, we have had success contacting the public transit and discussing, and in most cases, they back down,” Presley said. “We prefer to avoid a Charter Service Complaint because that means the private sector has already lost the opportunity.”
Potomac Valley Transit Authority has 30 days to respond to the complaint.
Service at NFL draft
In a separate case expected to be filed with the Federal Transit Administration on Thursday, AC Coach Operations Inc., doing business as Anderson Coach, alleges that Pittsburgh Regional Transit violated federal charter service rules tied during the 2026 National Football League Draft.
According to the complaint, Anderson Coach had been contracted to provide transportation services for the event from April 22-26, representing approximately $112,000 in revenue.
The company said those reservations were canceled March 31 by transportation broker Metropolis, which stated “the current needs can be met with local vendors.”
The complaint alleges Pittsburgh Regional Transit was the publicly announced primary transportation provider for the draft, operating specially designed “Football Flyer” routes funded in part by the Pittsburgh Organizing Committee, The Pittsburgh Foundation, and Sheetz Inc..
“The most plausible meaning of ‘local vendors’ in this context is PRT itself,” the complaint states.
“Anderson Coach states the harm to their company includes lost revenue, lost business opportunities, and competitive harm to the motorcoach marketplace,” Presley said.
Pittsburgh Regional Transit also has 30 days to respond to the complaint.
