Greyhound Bus Station - Oakland

2011 CC SA-BY Our Oakland

The Greyhound Bus Station in Oakland has been there for decades. If the reviews are to be believed, and to the best of my recollection from riding Greyhound ONCE many, many years ago, unless you are shooting a documentary, it was best to avoid this place! It closed in 2021 and has become even more rundown. Others recall a battered but elegant setting of marble, oak and tile, a real old-school terminal with the huge "BUS" sign visible down 20th Street with the promise of dependable, inexpensive motorcoach travel anywhere important.

In 2021, Greyhound Lines was purchased by FlixSE, the parent of FlixBus. Currently, both bus lines offer service from the West Oakland BART station to Los Angeles' Union Station on a fairly frequent basis every day. Greyhound formerly operated a premium bus service called Bolt Bus that also operated from the West Oakland BART station.

2017 CC SA-BY Our Oakland

History

The building was constructed in 1926 for the California Transit Company, an early bus company that eventually became part of Greyhound. The station was designed by Frederic L. Swartz and Columbus Jose Ryland, who were active in Fresno. ¹

While the later Greyhound station put a modernized facade over it, the original bus depot was an elegant building, reminiscent of the Western Pacific Depot. When constructed, there was a separate loading platform on the mezzanine level to put luggage on top of the busses. The waiting room featured marble floors, and a 38' high octagonal domed ceiling. ²