In The News

FROM KOCO NEWS CHANNEL 5 OKLAHOMA CITY

The charter bus industry has slowed to a complete stop during the coronavirus pandemic, and they need major help to restart and recover.

A local company told KOCO 5 about its Rolling Awareness initiative that has charter buses heading to Washington, D.C.

“The goal of that is to raise awareness of the critical and vital role that the charter bus industry plays in the transportation industry of this country,” said Rusty Handy, general manager of Village Travel in Oklahoma City.

The industry brings in $237 billion every year. But right now, you wouldn’t know it as Village Travel’s trips are taking a back seat to the coronavirus.

“It’s literally decimated our industry,” Handy said. “The cancellations started coming in around the last week of February.”

Now, no one is using Village Travel’s services. According to Handy, church groups, military members and entertainers are normally on the go.

“March is one of the busiest months,” Handy said. “If you are in the charter bus industry, March is your busiest month because it’s spring break.”

A typical cross country trip on a charter bus can hold 56 people, taking them to popular places such as Branson, Missouri, and the Grand Canyon.

“As of right now, we have nothing on the books for the next three months,” Handy said.

So, buses with Village Travel are rolling on to Washington, D.C., as a last resort, hoping for help from the government.

“What the industry is asking for, right now, is a $10 billion bailout to be divided around the industry as a whole,” Handy said.

According to Handy, they don’t have any meetings scheduled with any government officials as of now, but they want to explain that their industry employs hundreds of thousands of people while impacting millions.

The full article and accompanying video can be found on KOCO News Channel 5 ABC.

Heading into his 20th year of ownership, Arensdorf is poised to celebrate the company’s 40th anniversary in 2020. In anticipation of the event, as well as looking at a way to re-establish its identity, Village recently completed a rebrand of its company and fleet.
“The company started out as Alpine Village Tours, but when it bought its first bus, they painted Village Charters on it and the company operated primarily as Village Charters in the public eye for several years,” explains Arensdorf. “Then, they started using Village Tours for all their advertising and by the mid-’90s had some buses running around branded as Village Charters, while some other buses had the Village Tours branding.”
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We are thrilled to announce that Village Travel has joined the International Motorcoach Group (IMG). Formed in 1998, IMG began as a group of independent charter bus rental companies working together to form a North American network of operators that shared a commitment to excellence in customer service, safety, training and maintenance. Today, IMG members offer a wide range and selection of charter bus rental vehicles to meet customer needs. Bus charters, luxury motorcoaches, school buses, limousines, and shuttle services are all part of the prestigious IMG network that serves more than 21 million passengers. IMG pride itself on “Setting the Standard” in the transportation industry.
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On October 11th, Wichita employees made the long-awaited move into the new corporate office. Excitement was in the air as employees packed up their things and settled into their new work spaces. Customers also joined in the excitement, six tour groups departed from the new facility in the first 3 days of occupancy. The new Departure Center includes two enclosed, heated bays and a lounge área that seats up to 100 people. Tour customers are able to drive through the building to drop off their luggage, before driving into the secured customer parking lot. The majority of Village’s administrative staff operate out of the corporate headquarters as well.
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A new corporate name, logo and coach graphics were unveiled at a ceremony that was live streamed via Facebook to employees and customers. With a new headquarters being built and a 40th anniversary coming up next year, it seemed like the perfect time to make a much-needed change. Village has evolved significantly over the years, adding in new services and locations. We have gained more than 115 employees and added 36 coaches to our fleet in the last year alone.

“We are a company that is focused on travel – charter buses, tour packages, travel agency services, scheduled bus services and entertainer coaches. All of these facets of our business are centered around taking people places, hence the name change. Although we have grown, we are still one company, and the new name allows us to better represent that to our customers,” said Jeff Arensdorf, CEO.

The new logo was designed by Greteman Group, a well-respected marketing firm in Wichita. Several ideas were pitched, and it soon became clear that this logo would be the future look of the company for years to come.

“The company started out as Alpine Village Tours, but when it bought its first bus, they painted Village Charters on it and the company operated primarily as Village Charters in the public eye for several years,” explains Arensdorf. “Then, they started using Village Tours for all their advertising and by the mid-’90s had some buses running around branded as Village Charters, while some other buses had the Village Tours branding.”

In recent years, Village coaches have been branded with the “Village Tours & Travel” logo and the infamous “splash.”

Simplifying the name to Village Travel was a decision that was not made lightly, but we do feel it was what was best for all facets of our business. “Travel” is broad enough to effectively cover the company’s tour and charter divisions as well as its travel agency.