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FlixBus (German pronunciation:['flɪksbʊs]; styled FLiXBUS) is a German brand that offers low-cost intercity bus service in Europe, North America, South America, and Asia. It is owned by Flix SE [de], which also operates FlixTrain, FlixCar, Kâmil Koç, and Greyhound Lines. FlixBus operates buses or, in many cases, just handles marketing, pricing, and customer service for a commission, on behalf of bus operators.[1][2][3] In 2023, FlixBus had revenues of €2 billion and carried 81 million passengers of which 55 million were in Europe, 14 million were in Turkey, and 12 million were in North America.[4]
History
FlixBus was founded in 2011 in Munich by Daniel Krauss, Jochen Engert and André Schwämmlein. They had met in university and began discussing the concept in 2009 after plans were made to deregulate the bus industry in Germany.[5]
FlixBus launched its first three routes in February 2013 in Bavaria, Germany, to take advantage of Germany opening up its bus market to competition.[6] In the following years, it added routes across Europe.[7]
FlixBus expanded to the United States in 2018, first operating from Los Angeles,[9] then expanding to the East Coast in 2019 through a partnership with Eastern Bus.[10] FlixBus also launched service in Brazil in 2021,[11]Canada in 2022,[12][13][14]Chile in 2023, and India in 2024.[15]
In April 2022, the company converted from a GmbH structure to an SE structure and was renamed Flix SE.[16]
On 13 November 2024 at the Euro Bus Expo at the National Exhibition Centre, an announcement was made regarding a new partnership between FlixBus and Derbyshire-based bus operator Trentbarton.[17]
Acquisition of Eurolines operating businesses including France, The Netherlands, Belgium, Czech Republic and Spain and excluding Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Ireland, Switzerland and Serbia
In May 2017, the driver of a double-decker bus outside Berlin, Germany, attempted to drive under a bridge with insufficient clearance, completely ripping off its roof. No passengers were on board.[36]
In May 2018, a bus rolled and crashed near Udine, Italy. There were 43 people on board, of whom 26 were injured.[37]
In August 2018, a bus traveling from Stockholm to Berlin crashed in Germany after veering off a highway, seriously injuring sixteen passengers.[38][39]
In December 2018, a bus crashed on a motorway near Zurich, Switzerland, killing two people including the driver.[40]
In May 2019, a bus crashed in Germany. At least three passengers were seriously injured. Initial police findings were that the bus driver was not at fault for the accident.[41]
In May 2019, a bus rolled and crashed into a road safety barrier in Germany. One person was killed and 60 were injured. The local police found early indications the driver had fallen asleep.[42]
In October 2019, a bus rolled and crashed near Bizanet, France. One person was killed and 17 were injured.[43]
In November 2019, a bus rolled and crashed near Amiens, France, injuring more than 30 people.[44]
In February 2023, an Uber Eats bicycle courier was struck and killed by a Flixbus coach in Brussels, Belgium.[45] Two months after the incident, the government and FlixBus were criticized for not moving the bus stop away from the bike lane.[46]
In June 2023, a bus crashed in Avellino, Italy, when it swerved to avoid another car, resulting in one death and injuries to 26 passengers. The company was criticized by a passenger for the lack of support offered after the incident.[47][48]
In July 2023, a bus crashed into another bus in the Czech Republic, killing one of the drivers and injuring 76 people.[49]
In September 2023, a 19-year-old Austrian woman died after the bus overturned near Micheldorf, Austria, injuring 20 people.[50]
In December 2023, an overcrowded Flixbus from Vienna, Austria to Kyiv, Ukraine overturned in Trebišov district of the Košice region of Slovakia, injuring 9 passengers.[51]
On 5 January 2024, one person died and 11 others were injured in NY State, USA, after a Flixbus that was bound for New York City from Montreal, Canada, rolled over on Interstate 87.[52]
On 24 March 2024, one person died in Italy after a Flixbus travelling between Milan and Rome crashed close to Modena.[53]
On 27 March 2024, five people died and 20 others were injured when a Flixbus crashed near Leipzig, Germany, after veering off a highway bound for Zürich from Berlin.[54]
On 7 November 2024, around 7:10am, a Flixbus operated by Tribal Sun Bus LLC left the roadway and rolled over on I-490 just west of Rochester, NY. All 28 passengers injured and transported, one critical patient died at the hospital that night.[55] The bus left New York City around midnight, bound for Niagara Falls. The driver received tickets including fatigued driving, excessive speed, unsafe lane change, and no seatbelt.[56][57]
Controversies
Working conditions for drivers in Germany
In 2016, FlixBus was accused by a German government agency of forcing its partners to make drivers work excessive hours at low wages.[58]
Use of infrastructure without toll payments in Germany
Unlike train services and trucks, buses do not pay any road toll in Germany; this was criticized as a "hidden subsidy" by some German politicians in the spring of 2015.[59]bdo, an association of German bus companies, responded that buses pay for infrastructure use in the form of related taxes (on fuel, for example) while billions in subsidies are paid to national rail provider Deutsche Bahn.[60]
Dominant market share in Germany
In August 2016, following the acquisition of Postbus, FlixBus had control of roughly 80% of the German long-distance bus market, a move criticised by various media outlets as a de factomonopoly and harmful to competition. It was also suggested at the time that FlixBus' control of the market could lead to higher prices and less service to smaller destinations.[61][62][63]
Buses inaccessible for wheelchair users in California
On 14 May 2020, the Disability Rights Legal Center (DRLC) filed a federal class action lawsuit in a California U.S. District Court against FlixBus and other bus operators alleging that buses were inaccessible for wheelchair users and staff was untrained on how to accommodate wheelchair users.[64]
Tribal Sun Bus LLC - Conditional Safety Record
Tribal Sun Bus LLC (Rockland, MA) operates buses under the Flixbus brand. As of 6 November 2024, the FMCSA SAFER system reported 6 crashes in the last 24 months (starting 6 November 2022.) 1 fatal, 3 injury, and 2 towable.[65] In FMCSA SMS, Out of 77 driver inspections in 2 years, 21 had Hours of service (HOS) violations.[66] Prior to a rollover accident on 7 November 2024,[56] the FMCSA listed a Carrier Safety Rating[67] of "Conditional; Records indicate that the carrier was out of compliance with one or more safety requirements." [68]
