When Munich-based bus and rail operator Flix acquired Greyhound nearly five years ago, the North American intercity bus operator had fallen on hard times. Its business was deteriorating and the public saw bus travel as unsafe and undesirable. Fast forward to 2026. “Students, young professionals, retirees and value-conscious travelers are all choosing intercity bus,” Flix North America CEO Kai Boysan told Smart Cities Dive. Greyhound upgraded its fleet with 185 new buses over the past two years and has 80 more on order, according to CX Dive. Bus departures from originating terminals are 95% on time, and destination arrivals are over 80%, Boysan said. Across both FlixBus and Greyhound, more than 37 new lines have been added year-to-date, he said. The FIFA World Cup matches across North America boosted ridership this year, Boysan said. Many riders took their first intercity bus trips during the games. Higher gasoline prices and the May 2 shutdown of Spirit Airlines, a low-cost carrier, also drove more travelers to intercity buses, he said. “New customers [came] to our network,” Boysan said. Some had never used Greyhound, “and this gave us an opportunity to demonstrate that our product is much better than what they thought.” The company is already preparing for the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games in Los Angeles, he said. On the other side of the continent, the Northeast Corridor — especially Boston, New York City, Philadelphia and Washington — is one of Greyhound’s strongest markets, Boysan said. “We see a strong demand increase, and we look forward to increasing our offerings in that region.” Greyhound lost most of its bus stations during the Flix acquisition because the properties weren't part of the deal. But that’s turning around. The city of Chicago agreed in June to buy and renovate the downtown Greyhound terminal, which