I got to the depot over half an hour early for a bus to DC, but the bus that was there was not large enough to accommodate everyone. Station staff were useless and did not communicate with us as to what was going on in any meaningful capacity. Several passengers got their tickets refunded and split a Lyft to Fairfax; they made the right decision. The replacement bus came, but it did not leave until 6:10, and several seats on the bus were broken and would not move from the most reclined position, and legroom was not nearly as good as what was advertised. To make matters worse, the driver clearly did not know the route, so we basically drove in a circle for half an hour and didn't actually leave Charlottesville until 6:45 when one of the passengers intervened and took over navigation. The first stop took half an hour despite only a few people boarding, and the driver did not know where to go to let us off at Union Station. I ended up getting into DC nearly 3 hours late.
All in all, the station staff are not helpful, Greyhound overbooks and doesn't care that they're severely impacting people's travel plans, and passengers have to do basic tasks that bus drivers should know how to do before being hired. My advice to you if you want to take a Greyhound: don't. Save yourself the time, money, and frustration by finding a few friends and splitting a Lyft to wherever you're trying to go. If you're concerned with amenities while traveling, you're better off taking Amtrak; even the Cardinal Line, which is notorious for being late, is never anywhere near this bad. read more