"Before breaks we have to gear up and hire charter buses from other companies," David Fox, the company's general manager, said.
Dartmouth Coach carries approximately 108,000 people annually, bus driver Charles Allen said.
Despite the rising cost of gas and the expenses of maintaining the company's 22 employees and six buses, Fox said the company remains profitable because the buses run 364 days a year.
"The total passenger counts each day make up for everything," Fox said. "We haven't had a slow period for quite some time."
The number of passengers has increased lately, Fox said, partly because community members realized that although the bus company uses Dartmouth's name, ridership is not limited to just members of the Dartmouth community. Other than the name, Fox said the company has no connection to Dartmouth College and is privately owned by Concord Coach Lines.
"For a while in the beginning, there was a miscommunication in the Upper Valley that you had to work for the hospital or the College to ride the bus," he said.
One passenger, Cynara Nayar, a resident of West Lebanon, expressed satisfaction with the Coach's service, but added that she wished the company ran buses to more destinations.
"I'd like to see service to Manchester Airport," she said.
Boston resident Phoebe Gardener '11 agreed.
"I take it every time I go to Boston, but I think they should extend their service to cover New York City and other close towns," she said.
The Dartmouth Coach provides seven round trips a day to Lebanon, Hanover, Boston's South Station and Logan Airport.
Fox said the company is aware that some passengers would like to see more stops included, but said that such expansion is not currently feasible due to the company's small fleet of buses.
Community members traveling to other destinations can take the Vermont Transit bus service, a subsidiary of Greyhound Bus Company. The bus service stops in Hanover five times a day and provides transport to Montreal, Maine and other locations in northern New England, including Manchester Airport.
Dartmouth students, many bound for Manchester Airport, make up a large percentage of Vermont Transit's customers, said Samantha Pero, assistant manager of the Vermont Transit White River Junction Terminal. The company offers a Student Advantage Card, which gives college students a 15 percent discount on all ticket purchases.
Greyhound recently publicized plans to merge the routes currently staffed by subsidiary company Vermont Transit with its own Greyhound Lines in April. Details are not finalized, but scheduling changes are possible.
Fox said he thinks Dartmouth Coach provides more reliable service than Vermont Transit.
"Vermont Transit's biggest problem is that a lot of their buses originate in Montreal and get held up at the border," he said. "Nothing runs on schedule for them."
Dartmouth Coach passengers can also purchase a discount Commuter Passbook, Fox said, which reduces the price of five round trips to $150 if all are used within 60 days of the original purchase.
