Peter Pan Bus Lines operates an intercity bus service in the

Northeastern United States The Northeastern United States, also referred to as the Northeast, the East Coast, or the American Northeast, is a geographic region of the United States. It is located on the Atlantic coast of North America, with Canada to its north, the Southe ...

. It is headquartered in

Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is a city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States, and the seat of Hampden County. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ...

. It operates service to/from to Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Massachusetts, Maryland, New Hampshire, New Jersey,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island. Since its founding in 1933, the company has been owned by the Picknelly family. The company logo is based on an illustration by Roy Best for the ''Peter Pan Picture Book''. Peter Pan's fleet consists mostly of buses manufactured by Motor Coach Industries.

History

Peter Carmine Picknelly founded the company in 1933 with two

Buick Buick () is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Started by automotive pioneer David Dunbar Buick in 1899, it was among the first American marques of automobiles, and was the company that established General ...

limousines and named it after his son's favorite storybook, Peter Pan. The company's first route operated between

Northampton, Massachusetts The city of Northampton is the county seat of Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of Northampton (including its outer villages, Florence and Leeds) was 29,571. Northampton is known as an acade ...

and Boston through

Stafford Springs, Connecticut Stafford Springs is a census-designated place located in Stafford, Connecticut. The population was 4,988 at the 2010 Census. The village was a borough until November 1991, when it was disincorporated. Located near the source of the Willimantic R ...

, costing $1.75 and requiring nearly four hours of travel time. In 1957, the Massachusetts Turnpike was opened and travel time was cut in half. The son of the founder, Peter L. Picknelly, took over upon the death of the founder in 1964 and developed tour packages to the

1964 New York World's Fair The 1964–1965 New York World's Fair was a world's fair that held over 140 pavilions and 110 restaurants, representing 80 nations (hosted by 37), 24 US states, and over 45 corporations with the goal and the final result of building exhibits or ...

. Peter Pan Bus Lines was affiliated with Trailways Transportation System beginning in the 1990s, but ended that affiliation in 2005. In 1999, an alliance was formed with

Greyhound Lines Greyhound Lines, Inc. (commonly known as simply Greyhound) operates the largest intercity bus service in North America, including Greyhound Mexico. It also operates charter bus services, Amtrak Thruway services, commuter bus services, and pac ...

, coordinating schedules, marketing, and ticket sales. Peter Pan and Greyhound had been bitter rivals for most of the 1990s, when Peter Pan expanded outside New England to serve New York City, Washington, D. C., Philadelphia and

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic, and the 30th most populous city in the United States with a population of 585,708 in 2020. Baltimore was d ...

. This partnership was dissolved in 2017. In December 2002, Peter Pan acquired Coach USA's Northeastern division with 255 vehicles. In 2004, Peter Pan sold the Maine Line operation in Portland to Cyr Bus Line. In 2005, Peter Pan closed its Pawtuxet Valley, Rhode Island operations. In 2004, Peter A. Picknelly III took over as CEO after the death of his father.

Controversies

CEO Peter A. Picknelly III has made political contributions aimed at dissuading the development of high-speed railroads in Massachusetts.

References

External links

*
Peter Pan Bus Lines Inc. Company Snapshot
at the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration {{Authority control 1933 establishments in Massachusetts American companies established in 1933 Bus companies of the United States Companies based in Springfield, Massachusetts Economy of the Northeastern United States Intercity bus companies of the United States Transportation companies based in Massachusetts Transport companies established in 1933 Yellow Cab Company

History

Controversies

References

Further reading

External links