By Cyrus Farivar
02:00 AM Mar, 06, 2007RIGA, Latvia — At first glance, Hansa Buss’ new coach seems like any ordinary bus — it’s got big, not-yet-sticky rubber steps leading inside to row after row of seats.
Curiously, some of the seats have electrical outlets mounted in the sidewalls of the bus. Farther down the aisle, in the midsection of the bus, is a kitchenette, complete with an espresso machine, a microwave and a small pantry area. Way in the back, there’s even two wall-mounted flat-screen televisions.
But the real coup de grace is the fact that the entire bus has Wi-Fi during the entire five-hour journey between Tallinn, Estonia, to Riga, Latvia. That makes this rig likely the first international cross-border Wi-Fi-enabled bus line. Better still, the cost of connecting to the internet is included in the $40 one-way ticket.
Hansa Buss launched this line on March 1, at a price double that of its main competitor, Eurolines, which makes the same run for half the price. But that ride is more typically cramped and there’s no net access.
