Academy Bus Lines

Academy Bus Lines is a bus company in New Jersey providing local bus services in northern New Jersey, line-run services to/from New York City from points in southern and central New Jersey, and contract and charter service in the eastern United States from Boston to Miami. In 2014, Academy acquired Go Buses, which currently operates bus service between Boston and Washington, D.C., and in southern Florida. On September 27, 2023, Academy acquired James River Transportation, which operates in Virginia. Academy is the third-largest motorcoach operator in the United States and Canada. Academy's fleet consists of a variety of motor coaches, including MCI D4500 (in the process of being retired), MCI J4500, Van Hool CX35, Van Hool CX45, Van Hool C2045 motorcoaches, and Mercedes Tourrider coaches which are used for commuter and charter services. ENC Eldorado, Nova Bus LFS and New Flyer Industries low floor buses are used for university contracts and charters, such as Columbia Transportation. Services operated under contract to New Jersey Transit use NJT-owned (and branded) North American Bus Industries buses. Routes Under contract to NJ Transit Under contract to New Jersey Transit (NJT), Academy Bus operates the following routes using NJT-owned equipment. Routes are listed by county. NJT did not renew its contract with Academy for Hudson and Middlesex Counties following a fraud settlement with Academy. Current Former Other contract operations Under contract to Rutgers University, Academy Bus operated the campus shuttles for the New Brunswick and Piscataway campuses under a 10-year contract, until June 30, 2011, after which time First Transit Services, Inc. took over operations of the Rutgers Campus Buses. Academy has filed a lawsuit against the university over the loss of the contract. Despite the loss of shuttle operations, the company continues to provide the chartered bus operations used for tours and other events. Academy Bus took back the Rutgers University Bus contract for Newark on January 20, 2026 from Transdev. They will take the New Brunswick contract on July 1, 2026. Academy operates Columbia Transportation for Columbia University, using both Columbia-branded transit buses and Academy-branded coaches. Academy continues to run a separate operation in New York City for New York University and various operations for universities in southern Connecticut and around Boston. Also, Academy Bus operates long-term parking shuttles around Newark Liberty Airport under contract to the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey using Port Authority-owned and branded Orion VII buses, and using their own fleet as well. In January 2014, Academy began operation of the SIM23 and SIM24 (formerly X23 and X24) routes between Manhattan and Staten Island, formerly operated by the now bankrupt Atlantic Express. These routes were subsidized by and operated under contract to the New York City Economic Development Corporation. On January 3, 2022, operations of the two routes transferred to the MTA, with minor changes to the operating times and routing. As of October 1, 2014, Academy operates the MTA Maryland Commuter Express routes #410, #411, & #420 under contract to and using MTA Maryland owned buses. The #820 was also awarded by MTA Maryland and began operations on July 1, 2015. In 2017, Academy began a contract with UNC Charlotte to operate shuttles for Niner Transit, where Academy currently operates 13 New Flyer XD-40 Buses. Academy's Contract is expected to expire June 30, 2028. In 2021, Academy Bus Lines began operating the Tri-Rail Community bus network, where they operate a fleet of 21 ElDorado E-Z Rider II buses. In July 2022, Academy Bus took over operations of Disney World's Cruise Line Bus route. This service was previously done by Mears Transportation, until they lost the contract in June 2022. Academy Bus also added a new Disney World Sunshine Flyer service in November 2022. As of 2021, Academy is also contracted by Disney for shuttles for their Disney College Program participants. The routes are only for Flamingo Crossing Village residents in the College Program. As of September 27, 2023, Academy Bus acquired James River Transportation of Richmond, Virginia. As part of the acquisition, Academy took over Amtrak Thruway service between Charlottesville and Richmond that was previously operated by James River Transportation. On June 17, 2024, Academy Bus took over EZRide from Paul Revere Transportation. Academy Bus increased service, while adding new Eldorado buses to run the service. Academy operated under contract BestBus, which provides intercity buses between New York and the Washington area. BestBus was acquired by competitor DC Trails. Academy formerly operated under contract to Bridj, a private, app-based, on-demand transit service, in the Greater Boston area. Academy Bus also provides Uber shuttle bus service, as of July 2024. The company was selected by the Virginia Department of Rail & Public Transportation to operate the Tidewater Current, a bus line of the Virginia Breeze intercity bus service in Virginia, which started operations in the spring of 2026. Directly controlled commuter routes Academy Bus provides commuter line run service along several routes from Burlington, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, and Ocean counties in New Jersey. The full route is shown for each except for branching. Unless otherwise noted, passengers are carried to and from New York only. NOTES: Route 9 service via Academy is provided to lower Manhattan only (except for service via Jackson, which is available to midtown Manhattan). Route 9 service to midtown (except Jackson service) is provided on the 139 full-time. Toms River and Route 549 service via Academy is only provided to lower Manhattan. Toms River service to midtown Manhattan is provided on the 137 line full-time. All service via the Garden State Parkway (except for Route 9) operates via the Cheesequake park and ride. Shore Points and Parkway Express services also stop at the PNC Bank Arts Center. Casino line runs Academy Bus operates several regularly scheduled line services from points in the New York metropolitan area to and from casinos in Atlantic City, Yonkers, and Connecticut, with service to the Port Authority Bus Terminal operated in partnership with Coach USA as a Megabus service, the M25 (buses carry Academy markings). Go Buses Academy Bus runs an intercity bus common carrier service under the "Go Buses" brand, servicing the Northeast United States from Boston to Washington, D.C.. Go Buses markets its service with amenities such as free Wi-Fi, electrical outlets, and a free bottle of water upon boarding, along with a frequent rider rewards program. Offering tickets as low as $5 per one-way trip, Go Buses competes with other low-cost intercity bus services, such as Megabus, BoltBus, and various Chinatown bus lines. Academy Bus acquired Go Buses in 2014. Facilities As of March 2026, Academy Bus Lines manages 25 locations along the East Coast in order to facilitate its Scheduled, Charter and Contract Service operations. Connecticut Bridgeport Address: 114 River Street, Bridgeport, CT 06604 Services Offered: Charter Florida Fort Lauderdale Address: 4160 Ravenswood Road, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33312 Services Offered: Charter & Contract (Miami Hurry' Canes Shuttle) Jacksonville Address: 3501 West Beaver Street, Jacksonville, FL 32254 Services Offered: Charter Orlando Address: 1155 Elboc Way, Winter Garden, FL 34787 Services Offered: Charter & Contract (Disney College Shuttle) Tampa Address: 12301 40th Street North Clearwater, FL 33762 Services Offered: Charter West Palm Beach Address: 6575 Southern Blvd, West Palm Beach, FL 33413 Services Offered: Charter & Contract (Tri-Rail Buses) Georgia Atlanta Address: 3535 Bestfriend Road, Atlanta, GA 30554 Services Offered: Charter Maryland Baltimore Address: 201 Frankfurst Ave, Baltimore, MD 21225 Services Offered: Charter & Contract (Johns Hopkins University Campus Shuttle) Capitol Heights Address: 1700 Rochelle Ave, Capitol Heights, MD 20743 Services Offered: Charter & Scheduled Massachusetts Boston Address: 531 Pond Street, Braintree, MA 02184 Services Offered: Charter & Contract (EZRide) Chelsea Address: 333 3rd Street, Chelsea, MA 02150 Services Offered: Charter & Contract (BU Shuttle & Logan Express Black Bay Shuttle New Jersey Corporate Headquarters Address: 111 Paterson Ave, Hoboken, NJ 07030 Services Offered: N/A (office) Body Rite Address: 57 County Ave, Secaucus, NJ 07094 Services Offered: Body Shop, Charter & Contract (Newark Airport) Hackensack Garage Address: 600 River St., Hackensack, NJ 07601 Services Offered: NJ Transit Hoboken Address: 111 Paterson Ave, Hoboken, NJ 07030 Services Offered: Scheduled, Charter & Contract (NYU Shuttle, Columbia University Shuttle, Newark Airport) Leonardo Address: 890 State Route 36, Leonardo, NJ 07737 Services Offered: Scheduled, Charter & Contract (NJ Transit) Newark Airport Address: 620 Division Street, Suite J, Elizabeth, NJ 07201 Services Offered: N/A (office) Perth Amboy Address: 440 Florida Grove Rd, Perth Amboy, NJ 08861, USA Services Offered: Charter & Contract (Rutgers Campus Buses) Toms River Address: 2253 Route 9, Toms River, NJ 08755 Services Offered: Scheduled, Charter & Contract (NJ Transit) Westhampton Address: 6 Western Drive, Westampton, NJ 08060 Services Offered: Scheduled, Charter & Contract (NJ Transit) North Carolina Charlotte Address: 1251 W. Craighead Road, Charlotte, NC 28206 Services Offered: Charter & Contract (Niner Transit) Durham Address: 2020 South Briggs Ave, Durham, NC 27703 Services Offered: Charter Rhode Island West Warwick Address: 76 Industrial Lane, West Warwick, RI 02893 Services Offered: Charter Virginia Bristow Address: 7920 Gainsford Court, Bristow, VA 20136 Services Offered: Charter Norfolk Address: 33141 Azalea Garden Rd, Norfolk, VA 23513 Services Offered: Charter Richmond Address: 915 N. Allen Avenue, Richmond, VA 23220 Services Offered: Charter Corporate structure Academy Bus, LLC is a limited liability corporation and holding company that owns four operating companies: Academy Lines, LLC, Academy Express, LLC, Airport Express LLC, and No. 22 Hillside Corporation. Gallery See also Number 22 Hillside LLC/Corp References External links Official website