If you are a Megabus user you can get cheap bus tickets from Toronto to Montreal with ticket prices ranging from $10 to $50. Obviously you will want to book in advance to try to find a cheap ticket but even at $25 a ticket, it is still a great deal for those that remember the days of having to use Greyhound and paying extortionate prices.
One big selling point of Megabus has been their free wifi. For a bus ride that takes maybe 6 hours in each direction whether you are going from Montreal to Toronto or Toronto to Montreal, this is a great way to pass the time.
Over 2012 and at the start of 2013 the service on megabus for their wifi appears to be deteriorating or at least, there are more complaints about the lack of service.
On holiday seasons some of the buses were actual greyhound buses used which means you have a regular bus that does not have wifi. Other times when replacement buses come, they are also greyhound buses and do not have wifi at all.
Most of the time you can use the wifi and sometimes it times out and disconnects. Usually at this point the router and modem needs to be restarted. However on a few recent trips there has been no wifi available and now it seems that when the internet times out which happens about every hour, the modem and router can't be reset anymore. So if this is the case then you can't expect a trip that has wifi all the way. One employee has informed me that the modem can't be reset. The passengers seem to frown upon hearing this as they have their laptops open probably waiting to get online.
Free wifi is certainly a luxury for the riders which makes taking the bus change from something that used to be a chore to something a little more pleasurable. But if they cannot have consistent wifi then it starts making Via Rail and Porter airlines options that are worth considering unless you have a mobile phone with unlimited data and you can tether your device so you can get online with your laptop.
Overall the experience on megabus has been pleasant except for a few trips where one of the bus drivers was constantly using his mobile phone appearing to be texting. Looking around at other passengers they shared the same concern and fear as the bus would vibrate about every 30 minutes because the driver wasn't paying attention and went out of the boundaries of the road on the pavement that has the indents that vibrate your vehicle when you drive over it. Another few trips involve a short Asian driver whom for unknown reasons seems to always hit these parts of the road, the treads or audible highway warnings. When he drives over them he jerks the wheel hard in the opposite direction and everyone on the bus seems to have a look of fear on their face as if the bus is going to crash. Other friends that have had this driver can verify exactly how he drives.
Despite these complaints overall Megabus is still a godsend service for those that want to travel around and not spend a ton of money. This service has probably created opportunities for people to travel between larger cities with more frequency whereas previously they would have refrained due to the excessive costs involved. For a trip from Toronto to Montreal you can pay $10 on megabus, pay $100 to $200 with Porter airlines, $50 to $150 on via rail, or drive and spend up to $80 on gas. At least you can do work, sleep or go online with megabus or via rail.
You can visit megabus.com to find schedules throughout Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom and Europe.
