Coordinating ground transportation is a large part of a tour manager’s job.
It’s kind of like the finishing touch on a delicious meal created by a tour management chef.
When it tastes good, the correct vehicle is there ready and waiting. When it tastes bad, oh boy, does it taste bad.
Staying a step ahead of ground transportation logistics is going to make for seamless transfers for your band and crew.
In this article, we will discuss different parts of the ground transportation ecosphere as it relates to the live music business.
Types of Vehicle
There are a number of different vehicle types that one could request for passengers.
It’s important to confirm a specific vehicle type based on the purpose of the ride.
Sometimes you’ll encounter a well-intentioned transportation coordinator who will send you a vehicle that doesn’t exactly match what you’ve requested.
This is important! Any changes to the number of vehicles or vehicle type must be approved by the tour manager.
For example, a 15-passenger van with all of the seats still in it is not the same thing as a cargo van when you’re traveling with a 30-piece fly pack.
When transportation is not correct, it has a ripple throughout the entire day. Schedules are impacted, and what should be easy, becomes unnecessarily difficult.
Below we will run through some common vehicle types.
Sedan
Sedans are a great option when you need to transfer 1-2 people with a small amount of luggage. Low key and easy to find.
SUV
Maybe you have 4-5 people traveling, or perhaps you have 1-2 people who have some extra luggage or large equipment.
15 Passenger Van
Also known as a long-form torture device, the 15-passenger van is great to move a small group of people along with luggage from A to B.
It is often possible to request that the backseat be taken out to accommodate easy loading and unloading of luggage.
If you’ve had the pleasure of building character in one of these for an entire tour, you’ve experienced something truly special. Don’t forget to remove your valuables when going into the hotel for the night.
Sprinter Van
Sprinter vans are a step up in terms of quality and comfort when compared to a 15-passenger van. Bandago has a number of different options in its fleet. They will often have a boot or trunk in the back for storing equipment. This can sometimes help to avoid having to travel with a trailer. Something else to consider with this vehicle type are height restrictions for parking garages.
Cargo Van
Cargo vans come in many different makes and models, but the basic premise is an empty interior that can accommodate a larger amount of gear. These are not intended for passengers. These are commonly used by freight forwarding companies to move small loads of gear.
Mini Bus
Mini-buses come in a few different configurations. It’s best to check with the transportation vendor to confirm how many passengers and bags they can actually accommodate. They are bigger than a Sprinter and smaller than a Charter Bus. These can be useful when you’re trying to keep a group of people together, versus splitting the group into multiple forms of transportation.
Charter Bus
Charter buses are not the same as entertainer coaches. You can move groups of up to 50+ people. Again, it’s good to check with the transportation vendor to figure out what exactly a charter bus can accommodate.
Ride Shares & Taxis
There are a number of different ride-share services that are useful for transporting people when a dedicated runner isn’t available.
If using Uber or Lyft for touring purposes, you can set up a business account. This simplifies reimbursement and receipt reconciliation.
Additionally, Uber offers a dedicated team that specializes in entertainment tours.
If traveling internationally, check in with your local promoter rep to find out what the preferred local rideshare app is.
Taxis are another transportation solution that are readily available in any major city.
Rental Vehicles
Coordinating rental vehicles really depends on your camp and the type of gigs you’re doing.
Sometimes cars will be rented for convenience, cost, or general flexibility. Some artists even prefer to bring out their own vehicles on the road.
Hotel Shuttles
When doing a fly date, it’s very common for the tour to book hotels at the airport.
This can be a huge cost saver when it comes to coordinating ground transportation, but it is oftentimes more logistically straightforward too.
It’s good to check with the hotel and find out if you need to schedule ahead of time, how often the airport shuttle runs, and what the vehicle type is.
If you have specific needs, it can sometimes still be a good idea to coordinate your own transportation versus leaving things to chance.
Runner Vehicles
A runner vehicle is sometimes a personal vehicle, but more often these days, it is a rental vehicle hired by the promoter.
Depending on the promoter, sometimes you may encounter issues with putting passengers into a runner vehicle due to liability.
A runner vehicle is often used to pick up meals, production supplies, or whatever task you are needing to be done on a show day.
Chauffered Services
When you start working with a black car service, you will understand what a different level of service and experience it is. With that, there comes a different level of cost.
There are often minimums, and if a vehicle is on standby for whatever reason, the meter doesn’t stop running.
However, for teams of a certain level, the consistency, dependability, and security they provide are absolute game-changers.
Scheduling a ride share is not the same thing as scheduling a chauffeured service.
Establishing a relationship with a broker who has local relationships with global transportation affiliates is going to take your tour logistics to the next level.
Coordinating Festival Transportation
When advancing a festival, you will generally be connected to an artist transportation manager.
Depending on the size of the festival will determine how expansive the artist transportation team is and how information flows.
Bless the souls who work in the artist transportation department. If you’ve ever walked into an office and seen the flurry of activity you begin to understand just a sliver of what they do.
Their job begins long before the festival is underway. It’s important to communicate in a timely manner and get your requests in early as it makes everyone’s life easier.
Below you’ll find some different examples of the type of movements handled by artist transportation.
Non-Show Day Transportation
This is any movement that occurs outside of your performance day.
An example of a non-show day movement could be moving the band and crew from the airport to the hotel, or bringing people from the airport onto the festival site for an overnight load-in.
Sometimes festivals will not provide transportation outside of your artist’s designated show day. This is typically addressed in the artist welcome letter.
If the festival does not provide transportation on off days, be wary of using ride-shares. It can quickly become a cluster due to security, remote locations, and lack of familiarity with the grounds.
A healthy amount of pushback never hurt anyone.
Day of Show Transportation
This is when you and the team are coming on-site for the show day.
Sometimes they will be able to pick you up from a hotel, and sometimes you’ll have to get to a central hub where transportation runs from.
Make sure artist credentials have been picked up and distributed prior to coming on-site to avoid potential issues with security.
On-Site Transportation
These are internal movements that occur onsite at a festival.
The dressing room compound might not be located next to the stage you are performing at, or buses may have to park away from everything.
These rides are normally completed via some form of golf cart, gator, or tuk-tuk.
Sample Ground Transportation Template
It’s best to connect with your artist liaison or artist transportation department and answer any outstanding questions to avoid any miscommunications.
Below is an example of what you might commonly find on an artist transportation template.
- ARTIST
- STAGE
- HOTEL
- MAIN CONTACT
- PICK UP DATE
- PICK UP TIME
- PICK UP LOCATION
- # of PAX
- GEAR / LUGGAGE
- DROP LOCATION
- PASSENGERS NAME
- PASSENGER CELL
- PASSENGER EMAIL
- AIRLINE FLIGHT#
- DEPARTING CITY
- ARRIVING CITY
Production Runner Driver Etiquette
There are some simple tenets to adhere to when working as a production runner.
Oftentimes bands and crews are utterly exhausted from travel, and all they want to do is sit in peace and quiet. A famous scene from the movie Spinal Tap captures this scenario well.
On the flip side, the passengers could be ultra chatty and eager to engage and learn more about local haunts. The idea, either way, is to read the room and follow the passenger’s lead on communication.
Some other good practices to adhere to are not smoking in the vehicle, keeping the vehicle free of debris and trash, and not asking for autographs or photos.
Silence is golden, so turn that radio dial down unless otherwise requested to be on.
Make sure that the temperature in the vehicle is comfortable as well. Keeping a few spare bottles of water in the vehicle, along with phone charging cables is a nice touch.
Obeying traffic rules is an absolute must, and it goes without saying that a driver should have no alcohol or drugs in their system that could impair their driving performance.
Other Considerations
Take an extra minute at the end of a ride to dummy-check the interior and make sure that no one has left anything behind.
Lack of phones, wallets, keys, passports, and left behind luggage can make for a very debilitating experience upon realization.
There is a lot to juggle when traveling for work and these really small things can have a huge impact on a tour production.
Airport Signage
When being picked up by a driver at the airport, it’s a good idea to ask that the name put on the placard is not the name of the artist.
Superfans are smart, and it’s a small thing in helping to be discrete.
Conclusion
Coordinating touring logistics for ground transportation is a nuanced and detail-oriented endeavor.
It’s important that rides are confirmed and reconfirmed to ensure there aren’t snags in your day.
If a tour manager has properly done their job coordinating ground transportation, you don’t even know they’ve done their job.
It seems counterintuitive, but everything just works as if by magic. Cars are there when they’re supposed to be, the vehicle type is correct, and everything just flows. It’s when there is a snag you start to understand the logistics involved when putting together a ground transportation plan.
As with anything in the live entertainment industry, communication is key. Make sure your team has the information they need, and if something changes, make sure people are updated in a timely manner.