Newton’s Bus Service has come a long way — literally — since it started in 1953.
The family-owned company has started a run from Gloucester to the Virginia Beach Boardwalk every Saturday through the end of August.
The run, which costs $30 per ticket (free for riders ages 4 and younger), has two pickup times and locations: 8 a.m. at Gloucester Library and 8:50 a.m. at Gloucester Point. The motorcoach, which is equipped with air conditioning, bathroom and Wi-Fi, transports riders in about an hour depending on traffic.
The drop-off is at Arctic Avenue and 19th Street at the Oceanfront. The bus departs from the beach at 4 p.m. to take riders back to Gloucester.
“The idea is that we are taking the hassle out of people having to drive through the traffic, find parking and storing all of their beach chairs and coolers,” said Barrett Newton, tour director for Newton’s Bus Service. “We have undercarriage compartments for that so they can bring their small or medium-sized coolers.”
Since the summer months tend to slow down for the business, Newton said it was a great opportunity to offer this extra service.
“We’re always looking to grow the business,” Barrett Newton said. “And we’ve heard suggestions within the last couple of months about people looking for things to do within the community that wasn’t a crazy expense.”
Founded by the late Alvin Newton and his wife, Lucille, the company’s first run went to the Naval Weapons Station. The business later added another run to Newport News Shipbuilding.
Barrett Newton, his granddaughter, said it started small and grew from there.
“He recognized that there was a need within the community for individuals trying to get to work,” she said. “So, he started a run from Gloucester.”
In time, Newton’s was offering charter tours to Luray, various states up and down the East Coast and even into Canada.
The company, now owned by Newton’s son Warren and his wife Sabina Newton, has a fleet of 13 charter buses and employs 55 part- and full-time drivers. The late founder’s grandson Casey Newton works as vice president and his wife Danielle works as safety director.
Newton’s son and vice president Casey and his wife Danielle, safety director, also work in the family business.
The company maintains a sales office and garage based in Gloucester and keeps a satellite garage in Richmond.
“It really provides us the opportunity to serve a wider area of the population,” Sabina Newton said.
Although the company moved away from tours for a while, they have gotten back into it.
“We service all the states (except for Hawaii) and predominantly, we take most of our groups up and down the East Coast — New York, D.C. and into Canada — round-trip,” Sabina Newton said.
