There’s a difference between talking about an industry and actually seeing it up close.
Over the past year, I’ve spent a lot of time meeting with operators, partners, and stakeholders across the country. Those conversations are critical. They shape how we advocate, how we prioritize, and how we think about the future of our industry.
But every once in a while, you have the opportunity to step into the day-to-day. To walk the floor. To talk with the people doing the work. To see, firsthand, what it really takes to keep this industry moving.
That’s exactly what I experienced during a visit to ABC Companies’ service facility in Winter Garden, Florida earlier this year as part of our broader America 250 initiative.
And it reinforced something I think we all know, but don’t always stop to fully appreciate.
This industry runs on people.
What you don’t see matters most
When people think about motorcoach and group travel, they think about the experience. The destination. The journey.
What they don’t see is everything happening behind the scenes to make that possible.
Walking through the facility, what stood out immediately wasn’t just the scale of the operation. It was the precision. The focus. The pride in the work.
Technicians diagnosing complex issues. Teams coordinating parts and timelines. Conversations happening in real time to keep vehicles on the road and customers moving.
There’s a level of expertise here that often goes unnoticed. But without it, nothing else works.
Reliability isn’t a feature of this industry. It’s the foundation.
The people behind the performance
What stuck with me most were the interactions.
The technician who could walk through a problem before even opening a panel.
The team member who spoke about turnaround time like it was a personal commitment, not just a metric.
The pride that showed up in small details, in conversations, in how people carried themselves.
And just as importantly, the way those efforts were recognized.
There was a clear sense of mutual respect between leadership and the teams on the ground. Not performative, not staged. Just a shared understanding of the role each person plays in keeping things moving.
We talk a lot about innovation, technology, and what’s next. All of that matters. But none of it replaces the value of people who know how to do the work, take pride in doing it well, and show up every day to deliver.
That’s the backbone.
What was equally impactful was how visible the culture was in the casual interactions. In the way people engaged with each other, worked with one another. And it started at the top – with ABA Board Member Roman Cornell, CEO of ABC, walking the campus, talking with team members and leading by example.
ABC is a family-owned organization, and in many ways, you can see that reflected in how the business operates. Not just in structure, but in how people show up for one another.
That kind of environment doesn’t happen overnight. It’s built over time. And it’s sustained through consistency.
Visits like this are a reminder that the future of our industry doesn’t just depend on strategy or policy. It depends on whether we continue to invest in the people who make it all possible.
Why this moment matters
Our industry is at an important point.
We’re seeing renewed demand. New energy. New opportunity.
At the same time, we’re navigating real challenges. Higher costs. Workforce development. Training. Retention. The need to continue attracting and supporting the next generation of talent.
Visits like this are a reminder that the future of our industry doesn’t just depend on strategy or policy. It depends on whether we continue to invest in the people who make it all possible.
Because at the end of the day, buses don’t move themselves. Systems don’t fix themselves. Operations don’t run on their own.
People make it happen.
As we look toward the future and milestones like America 250, there’s a lot to be proud of as an industry.
We connect people to places. We support local economies. We play a meaningful role in how people experience this country.
And if there’s one thing this visit reinforced for me, it’s this:
The strength of this industry isn’t just in the vehicles we operate or the services we provide.
It’s in the people, the relationships, and the culture that make it all work.
