Stylish transportation modes popular for Inauguration Day
People bypassing the packed public transportation scene on Inauguration
Day are willing to pay a little more to ride with more leg room -- and
in some cases strobe lights.
With heavily taxed, shoulder-to-shoulder public transit systems promised
for riding in and out of D.C. on Jan. 20, limos, party buses and cabs
are looking like the attractive traveling option for many. The historic
demand for transportation in the region translates into the potential
for a historic bump in sales for local transport companies.
All of ABC Limo Service's 68 limos have been booked since Dec. 11 for
services between Jan. 17 and Jan. 20, according to Ali Sunny, general
manager of the company. Its big passenger -- the State Department -- will
be whisked around town in ABC's fleet of sedans and super-stretch limos.
A Brentwood, N.Y.-based party bus service in business for 11 years is
rounding up tourists from three states for day-long road trips to D.C.
on Jan. 20. So far, Party Ride has booked four buses and another six are
expected to be booked soon, for a total of 330 passengers.
"Three more scheduled reservations were cancelled because they were intimidated
by the large crowds that will be there," said Stephanie Parrizzi, sales
manager for Party Ride. "Some are bringing kids and said they don't want
to be there because it will be chaotic."
For $75 apiece, each rider rides round-trip in style. Each party bus
contains wraparound leather seating, 42-inch flat screen TVs that play
DVDs, restrooms, optional lighting and a smoke machine.
"It's like a disco on wheels," she said, adding that the D.C.-destined
clientele probably won't be pushing the flashing lights button en route
to the swearing-in ceremony. "Most people that I spoke to seem to be more
church groups than anything else. We are not expecting drunk people getting
off the buses."
And with middle-of-the-night departure times, there probably won't be
much TV watching, either.
The buses will leave even earlier than planned to get to RFK Stadium
-- where they will park -- by 6:30 a.m. on Inauguration Day. Buses leave
from New Jersey and New York at about 2 a.m. and out of Pennsylvania at
4:30 a.m.
This will be the third presidential inauguration for local transportation
service Reston Limousine.
"For the other three, we did not get any bookings until January," said
Kristina Bouweiri, head of Reston Limousine. "This year the phone rang
off the hook the day after the election."
She said her company took in $60,000 in bookings that first week and
since then another $60,000 has rolled in. The 150-vehicle fleet is currently
75 percent booked and she hopes to be completely sold out in a few days.
"Every type of vehicle imaginable has been booked," she said. "The first
category to sell out was the 57-passenger coach bus. The next most popular
vehicle is the stretch limousine."
Passengers range from long-term clients to new clients, celebrities,
nonprofits, large organizations, small organizations and the media. Bouweiri
said her company has an upper hand because private vehicles will not be
able to cross bridges into the city.
Some cab drivers choosing to cruise the streets on the big day aren't
looking forward to it.
"The fare in D.C is not really fair," said Tadesse Gebreu, an independent
D.C. cab driver for Sun Cab. "For taxis in Maryland, Arlington and Alexandria,
the fare is 30 percent higher than D.C. As a result, we try to work harder
to make a lot of money because the fare is low."
He adds that while other modes of transportation -- like Amtrak and the
Metro -- are raising fares, D.C. cabs are not.
He plans to start working at 6 a.m. and work for 13 hours or until he
runs out of gas.
"If not I have to change my schedule and start at 5 p.m. to 6 a.m.,"
he said, in order to pick up the 4 a.m. bar hoppers.
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