Lucky Star joins Hub bus wars

Bargain bus riders don't need to wait until BoltBus launches service on April 24 to travel between Boston and New York for $1 one way. Lucky Star, a five-year incumbent on this ultra-competitive route, said that starting today it, too, will offer one seat per bus for just a buck.

The family-owned Chinatown bus company is caving under new competition from corporate giants Greyhound Lines Inc., which runs BoltBus in several East Coast cities, and Coach USA, which on May 30 will add the Boston-New York route and the $1 fare to its MegaBus subsidiary, which serves nearly 30 cities.

Lucky Star said it isn't sure how long it will be able to maintain this price war - especially with rising gas prices - but it's trying to hang on to its customers.

"How do we all survive?" asked Fu Mei Cheung, vice president of operations at Lucky Star, which runs 22 buses a day between the Hub and Manhatthan.

Lucky Star already matches pioneering competitor Fung Wah Bus Transportation Inc. in pricing each seat on the 57-passenger bus at $15 one-way, which has made it "very hard to maintain the company," Cheung said.

Now, weekday one-way tickets purchased online at www.luckystarbus.com will go for $1 to $15 each, plus a 50-cent transaction fee. The walk-up fare will still be $15 on most buses and $25 on the 2 a.m. departure.

"It will be interesting to see how we are going to make it," Cheung said. "How long are we going to last?"
(By Nicole C. Wong, Globe staff)
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