A Moving Bus

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There are any number of popular songs that make "movin' on down the highway" sound like a fulfilling, and even exhilarating, experience . . . but when a change of job or lifestyle makes relocation necessary, most folks find the task a good bit less than pleasant. In fact, moving can be not only a tremendous hassle, but also a pretty darned expensive one.

That second concern loomed pretty large several years ago when my family of four had to leave Minneapolis, Minnesota for the western part of Montana, a distance of about 1,200 miles. We couldn't afford to hire a professional company—since I was fresh out of school at the time—and even the $600 fee stipulated by the local you-drive agency seemed a bit beyond the reach of our budget. In short, we knew we had to come up with a less conventional, lowercost way to get there.

Happily enough, after a few hours of deliberation we hit upon what turned out to be the perfect answer to our moving woes: buying a used bus! After all (we reasoned), with its seats removed, a bus would have a lot of cargo space . . . it would be equipped with an engine designed to haul hefty loads . . . and we could probably sell the vehicle at our journey's end or—at the very least—put it to use as a portable outbuilding.

The idea proved to be a practical one, too. We've changed homes twice since that first jaunt to Montana and have used a bus on each occasion. So why shouldn't you try the same thing?

FINDING THE BEST DEAL

Of course, the first thing you, as a would-be bus owner, will have to do is shop around for a vehicle that satisfies your needs and won't empty your pocketbook. Our initial buy was an orange International Harvester 48-seater that we purchased secondhand from a transit company. School systems and churches can also be counted upon to sell old buses from time to time.

Use care (and be patient) when making your choice. Remember that the ideal machine will not only haul all your belongings a long way, but also provide you with a profit upon resale. I suggest, then, that you buy from either a reputable transit company or a good school district, because such organizations generally make every effort to keep their buses in working order and will often have up-to-date maintenance and safety inspection records for each one. Mileage data and information on individual vehicle peccadilloes will often be scribbled in the margins of the forms as well. Ask to see the sheets and check them carefully . . . you'll likely be able to eliminate a lot of potential buys on the basis of their service records alone.

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