Party bus owners say new regulations could be bad for business

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Transportainment owners said Wednesday that the new regulations, specifically registering to operate as a sightseeing or entertainment vehicle, could force them to overhaul their business models.

Party bus owners and Nashville residents met Wednesday to make a case for their place in the business world of Nashville, a sentiment that is not shared with all Nashvillians.

“Many operators have been conducting business without respect for the community’s concerns of clear chaos and unsafe conditions at best,” one Nashville resident said at the meeting.

Depending on business operations, party bus owners must apply for either sightseeing or entertainment vehicle permits. One big difference is that alcohol is only permitted on entertainment vehicles. In addition, those that serve alcohol can only do so now if they’re enclosed, which several owners say is hard on customers in the summer heat and claims it hurts business.

“There’s a reason people are going to efforts to differentiate themselves between sightseeing and party bus because party bus rules are a death sentence,” one party bus owner said.

Those owners said the new rules could lead to complete shifts in their business models.

“People won’t let alcohol on their vehicles so they can keep them open, and it’ll just turn into where they just make stops on a pub crawl, and if that’s allowed, great because I’ll do that,” another resident said.

More regulations, such as zones of operations, hours of operations, and who can and cannot serve alcohol, could still be coming.

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