DRIVING SUCCESS ACROSS THE NATION
With a network of companies that carry millions of passengers annually throughout the US and Canada, the company not only provides transportation services but also promotes and generates wider economic growth through job creation and improved access to safe, reliable, and affordable transportation.
“Our mission is to connect people, places, and opportunities,” opens Derrick Waters, CEO of Coach USA.
“This drives our daily operations, from strategic route planning to providing accessible services in underserved areas. By focusing on community needs and enhancing connectivity, we help individuals access vital services and opportunities while ensuring a seamless travel experience.”
Waters has built his career over 30 years in the transportation and logistics industry, including 34 years at UPS®, where he retired in 2021 as Vice President of Package Operations.
He then joined Coach USA as COO and, in 2023, became CEO, continuing his focus on innovation and operational excellence.
His passion for supply chain management stems from its critical role in driving business success and community connectivity.
“I’ve always been drawn to how the supply chain creates seamless operations and directly impacts the customer experience,” Waters explains.
In addition to his corporate roles, Waters serves as Board President of the Nate McMillan Foundation, an organization dedicated to mentoring and empowering young men affected by fatherlessness. He is also a member of the US Department of Transportation (DOT) Human Trafficking Advisory Board, where he focuses on leveraging transportation networks to combat trafficking and support broader societal initiatives.
Waters views the supply chain industry as a consistently exciting and dynamic field, with innovations and transformations on the horizon.
“The industry is currently undergoing significant transformation. The integration of technology, a heightened focus on sustainability, and the demand for resilience make it a dynamic space,” he says.
For transportation specifically, supply chain efficiency directly impacts service delivery and customer satisfaction, presenting challenges and growth opportunities.
OVER A CENTURY OF INNOVATION
Coach USA and its affiliated companies are trusted business partners providing commuter and line run services, airport transfers, charter bus rentals, tours, and many contract service solutions. Through the company’s affiliates and subsidiaries, it has been offering passenger transportation solutions for nearly 100 years.
“Coach USA has always remained committed to safety, innovation, and adaptability. From our early days of providing local bus services to becoming a leading provider of transportation solutions, we have continuously evolved to meet the changing needs of our passengers,” informs Waters.
Today, the company operates a comprehensive network connecting urban centers and rural communities, offering services such as commuter bus routes, airport shuttles, charter services, and sightseeing tours.
Additionally, it has operations in 13 locations throughout the US and Canada, alongside more than 1,700 employees and 1,100 buses.
What truly sets Coach USA apart from the rest is the company’s unwavering commitment to its mission and pillars.
“Our mission drives every aspect of our business. We strive to not just meet but exceed customer expectations by delivering safe, reliable, comfortable, and convenient transportation, supported by the dedication of our people and our focus on innovation,” impassions Waters.
Specifically, the company highlights safety, planning, training, implementation and execution, customer-centric values, and strong community partnerships as its distinctive elements.
Effective planning underpins the company’s operational success, as it firmly believes this is essential to delivering on its service commitments.
This proactive approach enables it to anticipate challenges and adapt to changing market needs, ensuring it consistently provides seamless transportation solutions.
Equally, implementation and execution are where Coach USA turns its plans into action – whether by launching new contracts, integrating advanced technologies, or expanding its service network, the dedicated management team guarantees each initiative is executed with precision and efficiency.
Furthermore, the company tailors its services to meet the unique needs of the communities it serves, prioritizing accessibility and inclusivity.
These customer-centric values and strong community partnerships, combined with a drive for continuous improvement and technological advancement, allow Coach USA to deliver transportation solutions that truly connect people, places, and opportunities.
“Our pillars of safety, planning, training, and execution, alongside our mission-driven focus on innovation and community engagement, set us apart as a leader in passenger transportation,” declares Waters.
COMMITTED TO SAFETY
For Coach USA, safety is a top priority, setting it apart in an industry where reliability and trust are paramount.
“There are many things that we do best, but the most critical one is safety, which is at the very core of everything we do. We are dedicated to a ‘safety first, last, and always’ attitude,” emphasizes Waters.
The company adheres to rigorous safety protocols, ensuring the well-being of both passengers and employees.
From its fleet to its facilities, safety considerations guide the company’s operations, with comprehensive training programs reinforcing a culture of safety across the organization.
The foundation of the company’s commitment to safety is embodied in its safety program and training, where new drivers undergo a minimum of 150 hours of classroom and behind-the-wheel training before they begin service. Even those with an existing commercial driver’s license are required to complete more than 90 hours of theory and practical training.
“Our driving team is one of the best-trained in the industry,” states Waters.
Serving as a cornerstone of Coach USA’s competitive edge, the company invests heavily in its people by offering extensive training that covers dispatch, fleet management, customer engagement, driver safety, and leadership development.
“By nurturing talent and fostering diversity, we empower our employees to excel in their roles and drive the company’s success,” further expands Waters.
Equally, Coach USA also invests in new technology and innovations to ensure it remains an industry leader.
The company consistently reviews its digital touchpoints to guarantee it is offering an exceptional user experience and even provides customers peace of mind with bus tracking, allowing them to readily monitor the status of their trip in real time.
“We’ve introduced chatbots on our Coach USA and Megabus websites, which helps us to assist a much higher volume of inquiries, even outside of typical business hours, and has dramatically improved the customer experience,” prides Waters.
GOING GREEN
Partnerships are crucial to the ongoing success of Coach USA, with the company consistently leveraging such relationships to expand its network and enhance connectivity.
A significant component of its strategy involves collaborating with smaller bus companies to link routes and streamline ticketing through shared platforms.
One such example is the company’s partnership with Transcor Data Services (TDS), allowing it to integrate real-time booking and capacity sharing with regional partners such as Peter Pan Bus Lines, Northwestern Stage Lines, and Salt Lake Express.
“These collaborations enable partner bus companies to sell tickets via our website, offering passengers broader travel options while maintaining the unique local service these companies provide,” details Waters.
“By fostering these partnerships, we’re building a more connected and efficient transportation network for the future.”
Equally as important to the continued progression of Coach USA and the future of the industry as a whole are the company’s eco-friendly solutions, as it works to make bus travel the best alternative and green form of transportation.
In recent years, Coach USA has reduced the carbon impact of its business by 37 percent in the US and 26 percent in Canada.
This has been achieved through programs focusing on improving energy efficiency at its facilities and reducing carbon emissions from its fleet, helping customers by offering greener transportation services.
“We are actively working on sustainability through route optimization, fuel efficiency, and sustainable maintenance practices. These efforts reduce our environmental impact and position bus travel as an eco-friendly alternative to personal vehicles,” expands Waters.
As Coach USA looks ahead to another century of success, innovation, and transportation solutions, it is focusing on key priorities such as expanding services to underserved areas, enhancing safety and operational efficiency, investing in technology and talent development, and strengthening sustainability initiatives and community partnerships.
In addition to these priorities, the company is committed to its employees’ and customers’ safety, security, and well-being.
As part of this commitment, it is striving toward Destination Zero – an international strategy to achieve zero preventable accidents and injuries. While the primary focus of Destination Zero is safety, it extends into all areas of the company’s operations, including maintenance, where the goal is to achieve zero emissions across the company’s fleet by 2050.
Coach USA is committed to being the safest transportation company in North America. That is why the company launched its Pedestrian, Passenger, Bicyclist, and Scooter Safety Campaign (P.B.S.S.), a program specifically dedicated to eliminating passenger and traffic fatalities and serious injuries involving its fleet.
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