Megabus to end Pittsburgh to Cleveland to Detroit route after May 6

The only westbound Megabus route from Pittsburgh is no more. The low-cost carrier has announced it will be ending service on its Pittsburgh to Detroit (via Cleveland, Toledo and Ann Arbor) route after May 6.

Responding via email to our inquiry about the lack of available tickets for these routes beyond the first week of May, Mike Alvich, Vice President of Marketing & Public Relations for Megabus.com/Coach USA, said in a statement:

“Unfortunately, due to insufficient ridership, service on the Pittsburgh-Cleveland-Toledo-Detroit-Ann Arbor route will be discontinued after May 6. Customers in each market will have access to other service routes. There is always the possibility of resuming service or adding additional service options in the future if demand allows.”

The Pittsburgh to Cleveland route was a primary link between Megabus routes in the Great Lakes region and those in the Northeast. For riders who chose to connect multiple Megabus trips to take longer journeys around the country (Chicago > Cleveland > Pittsburgh was one such option), the loss of the Pittsburgh-Cleveland route will be a big blow. Greyhound and Amtrak continue to offer a link between the cities.

In addition, Megabus will continue to operate other routes connecting cities in Ohio and Pennsylvania, including Columbus-Erie and Cleveland-State College.

Ann Arbor, Michigan will also be heavily affected by the change, as that city will lose all of its Megabus service except a couple of daily trips to and from Chicago.

Current Megabus Service from Pittsburgh

The level of Megabus service from Pittsburgh has fluctuated over the years. In March 2011, Pittsburgh was named the sixth Megabus hub. At the time, riders could travel from Pittsburgh to 15 other cities, but that number will be down to six following the latest round of service changes.

After May 6, the remaining Megabus routes from Pittsburgh will allow riders to travel to Morgantown, Harrisburg, State College, Philadelphia, New York City, and Washington DC.

UPDATE, JULY 2020: As of this writing, riders from Pittsburgh can now travel to only two other destinations: State College (home of Penn State University), and New York City. That obviously makes it difficult to see most of the East Coast from the Burgh.

Cleveland has lost most of its service, too. The only current Cleveland route goes straight to NYC. That means that the Midwestern network of Megabus routes (from Indianapolis and Chicago to the west) no longer connect at all to the eastern network (Cleveland and to the east.)

Meanwhile, Megabus no longer offers service in Michigan at all. So folks in Detroit and Ann Arbor have to find alternate methods of transport.

That’s unfortunate for budget travelers. At this point, you’re left with Greyhound, Amtrak, or possibly a budget airline like Frontier.

Check out our ultimate guide to traveling on Megabus, which has tips on securing the best seats and getting the cheapest tickets.