The Trolley Car & Bus Company

Rented a trolley for the evening for my 30^th birthday and couldn’t have asked for a better experience. Kurt, our driver, was early for the pickup and 100% professional (but fun!) the entire time. He had no issues with us extending the time (we were having too much fun to end the party) and had no issues with navigating the city. He even played DJ a little bit, turning down the music during the chorus of really fun songs so all you could hear was us singing. Absolutely loved working with this company — Kristi was great and easy to work with via e-​mail and they were so absolutely affordable. If I ever get married in Chicago and need a trolley, I will use them again no questions asked!

We got a 33 person mini bus for our wedding party. It was phenomenal and my bride’s favorite part of the day.
I had shopped around and these guys were the best price. Highly recommend them to any bridal party.

Booked the trolley for our wedding, were so satisfied with the service. The driver was super friendly and accommodating. And most importantly was a few minutes early. Everyone had a fantastic time!

We rented a trolley for our wedding and it was an awesome and easy experience. The trolley was easy to book and communication was excellent. Our driver was friendly and knowledgeable, and arrived early for our pick up. He had no problems taking us all around downtown Chicago for photos. The trolley was decorated inside and out, and we were able to bring food and drinks on board. Highly recommend!

Everybody loved the trolley we used as a shuttle for the wedding (especially the out of towners). It was clean, well heated, decorated with some flowers, and had complimentary champagne on board! Our driver was really friendly and fun!
Kristi, the person we were in contact with, was extremely flexible and informative. She even let my husband and me drop by to take a look at the trolleys first before committing to renting them out.
They were way more affordable than any other company I contacted, and were the friendliest and quickest to respond. I definitely recommend them!
Thank you so much for helping make our day special! — Abi

Clean equipment and friendly staff combined with fair prices have worked for our group many times over the past 3 years, good people to do business with!

My husband and I got married last year on August 28^th. We had a large bridal party of 20 people. We ordered a Trolley for the day, and it was able to accommodate everyone including the photographer and videographer comfortably. Our driver was AWESOME! He was very kind, funny, and a safe driver. We had a somewhat long route from the hotel, to the park for pictures, the church, and lastly the reception. We were able to play music, drink, and have fun! I wish I could remember the driver’s name, but anyway it was a overall great experience! The Trolley Car and Bus Company made our wedding a truly memorable one. The driver, the trolley, and the company were great to work with. I totally refer them to anyone!

I have rented trolleys before for parties but the Trolley Car & Bus Company far exceeded any other company I have used! You will pay more but they are worth it! Kristi in the office and our driver Ken were both outstanding! On previous lowest-​bidder trolley rides I’ve been very disappointed in the quality of the trolley, their drivers could not communicate effectively in English AND were not familiar with spots to stop. Ken was professional and offered great suggestions. The trolley was just as it appeared on-​line; clean and very well-​maintained. Won’t hesitate to use them in the future.

Whatever you do, do not use this company. I would give a negative rating if possible. We hired them for our wedding in July, estimated on our contract that we would have 30-​plus passengers needing transportation. They picked up 7 people, none of whom were asked if they were even with our wedding party. After a few minutes, while guest were still trickling out of the venue, the driver decided to leave. My uncle, who happened to be on the bus, even said to the driver to wait for more passengers, but the driver refused. Not one phone call was made to any person on the contract. When my now father-​in-​law exited the venue, he saw nearly 20 people standing on the sidewalk, waiting for transportation that had already left. My father-​in-​law called the Trolley Company multiple times (which we confirmed with our phone records) and received no response. Most guests had to take taxis back to the hotel, which was outside of the city. It unfortunately put a damper on an amazing night.
The customer service we have received has been terrible. We asked for a partial refund from this company (for the 20 passengers who were not picked up), but received no response to multiple calls and multiple emails. My wife wrote an email since they would not respond to my father-​in-​law, to which they replied in a beyond rude manner that they have «many duties here, your e-​mail inquiry is not one of them.» They also said that they «feel your father has been treated in a professional and business like fashion with the utmost respect.» How, may I ask, is not replying to emails and ignoring phone calls treating a customer with respect? How is not providing the service your business is intended to do ‘professional and business like’? He also added, «We are a small family owned and operated business which does not have the financial wherewithal to simply issue refunds or credits in order to maintain customers good will.» We were not asking to ‘simply’ issue a refund. Most businesses, small or big, issue refunds to customers when service that was paid for is NOT provided. Customers drive a business, and spread the word when a company delivers. The Trolley Company does not seem to understand this concept.
The Trolley Company unfortunately has taken us on a ride we never asked for, and I joined Unilocal simply to review their bad business practices. My father-​in-​law even wrote a Unilocal review, in a lot nicer tone than mine, but it was mysteriously removed. If you have made it this far in the review, I will reiterate, DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY. Save yourself the headache.

Used them for our wedding, everything was on time and they were great to work with!

Hired them for our wedding and they were 25min late picking us up after the ceremony. To the drivers credit he did call twice to ensure us he was coming and overall it was a good experience however the only detail that really matters on your wedding day is timeliness. This company is one of the more, if not the most, expensive trolley companies in Chicago which is why we hired them for our wedding. Unfortunately that extra cost didn’t ensure an on time arrival.
I understand that traffic can be unpredictable but when you’re paying $ 1,200 for three hours I expect that to be accounted for. Furthermore no one at the company even reached out to acknowledge their tardiness or apologize which doesn’t reflect great customer service. Just beware if you’re hiring these people for your wedding.

We used this company for our July wedding — they were great! They provide champagne, arrived early and the driver was really entertaining. The trolley is air conditioned so we were all kept cool. The staff is easy to work with and the process was seamless. Definitely recommend — cheaper than other companies too.

The service the night of our event was fantastic, and the management group is very upfront and organized. I would gladly recommend their services and trolley to friends for future events.
The trolley was also one of the nicer trolleys I have been on in Chicago — A+ ranking for this group!

We reserved a trolley for our recent wedding and the experience was outstanding.
While planning for our event, everyone was very courteous and organized. They checked in a week prior to run through the final timeline and locations.
On the day of the wedding, the trolley showed up early to transport the bridal party to the church. The trolley was clean and nicely decorated for our event. Our driver for the day was excellent and didn’t mind our celebrations on the way to the reception venue. We made a couple stops for pictures and remained on time for our cocktail hour.
There is an aux hookup so we were able to play our music while en route and our photographer got some great pictures. The decision to have a trolley for our bridal party was a great choice!

Rating The Trolley Car & Bus company even one star is a stretch for me. If you don’t want to read the full review of my dreadful experience just know that they are unorganized (lost all records I provided them with), disrespectful (insulted me on several occasions), and lack communication skills (you will be fed different information depending on who you speak with, manager and owner included, and brushed off after they «play nice» with you when you first speak with them).
I was in the process of booking with them for my wedding and provided them with all the details needed and was awaiting a contract to be sent out. I was told I would get a military discount of at least 10%. 2 weeks later, still nothing. I decided to call and see what happened, and they lost all the information and records I provided them with. I spoke with the manager and he made no effort to help. I was told they never offer a discount on Saturday, and that I was making this up. Upon asking to speak with the owner, who I had spoken with earlier, I was told she was busy and would call me back later. No call.
I wrote this email expressing my concern and still did not receive any response:
Hi XXX,
I am very disappointed that I have to write this email. I am not one to complain, but feel as if the customer service I have received today has been very lacking. I called and spoke to someone on November 1^st and was told that the contract was completed and being sent out along with information about a military discount. I was on the phone for a good 20 – 30 minutes providing all my information, addresses and stops. She was not sure what exactly the discount was, but said it would be around 10%. I was under the impression that I was all set up till recently when I did not receive the contract.
Today, I called the office to try and figure this out, because my fiancé and I were both very interested and had no doubt that we wanted to book with you guys. After today, I definitely have my doubts. Upon calling, I was told that you never offer discounts, military or not, on Saturdays and that I must have called the wrong number. I asked to speak with the owner, who apparently I spoke with on the first, and she was busy and was going to call me back. I have not heard back and am overwhelmed with confusion about what happened.
I looked at my phone history and called on the November 1^st around 11:15 and it is the same number I called today. (I did not call the wrong number. Who I spoke with even mentioned that you were not in and that is why she was calling me back). I was told I had a contract ready and that I would get a military discount of at least 10%. The additional information about military discounts would be sent with the contract Today, I learned that I don’t have a contract yet and that I cannot receive any discounts. There was not any effort put it in to figure out what went wrong and I was brushed off. If this is any indication as to what it will be like on the wedding day, I will be forced to book with a more reliable service. Like I mentioned, I honestly do not like complaining or writing emails like this; I just feel as if I am getting fed different information from every source.
If you could please clear this all up so we can move forward, I would appreciate it.
Thank you,
I called once again and was told I would get a military discount, even though he «doesn’t know why the owner would do that for us» (Talk about disrespect). He went on later to call me a «Nervous Nancy» for calling them back. When I told him that he was insulting me he claimed he wasn’t insulting me at all because he doesn’t «BS» he just tells it how it is. He then went on to say that I was «Scary» and continue to call me a Nervous Nancy. He referenced my email as «scaring them» and continued to talk over me whenever attempted to talk. I’m sorry, but if you are the manager, and I feel I am being insulted when you call me a Nervous Nancy why would you continue to call me that on several occasions? He was rude, unhelpful, and would not let me speak to his owner (I wonder why).
But hey, if you want all your information lost, to be told different information regarding prices every time you call, to be insulted, and have an overall terrible experience, they are the right choice for you!

My husband & I hired this company to provide handicap accessible trolley service on 8÷1÷2014. The process booking them was fine & they had no problem taking our money.
Fast forward to the day of our wedding. They sent us a trolley that had a broken air conditioner on a warm & humid 83 degree day (so even if the additional problem I explain below doesn’t apply to you, consider that you may just sweat like crazy on the day of your wedding looking all beautiful/​handsome). Then, when my brother (who is in a wheelchair) went to use the lift it would not work (only rising about 2 feet before malfunctioning — never reaching the landing where he could safely get off). My husband and 5 groomsmen all tried pushing the lift up to no avail (in the process covering themselves in dirt and grease in their nice clothes). After my brother removed himself from the lift, it would not even retract back into the trolley so that the vehicle could be driveable. Therefore we had no transportation. Despite the contract stating that alternative transportation may be provided in the unlikely event that the one we booked becomes unavailable, the company did not honor this. We were forced to take our very friendly photographer’s car & another guest’s car so that we could get to our reception as all the bridal party’s cars had already been brought to the hotel.
The customer service woman at the company, after hearing from us that day, was rude, unapologetic, & completely dismissive of our issue; telling us how difficult this was for HER (not once apologizing for our difficult situation on the most important day of our lives). She couldn’t have been any more awful in her response.
We did finally email with someone 4 days later who tried to make it as right as he could. He issued a refund plus $ 200. However, the moments we lost because of the time we spent trying to get the trolley to function are priceless. The worst decision I made for my wedding day was booking with this company.

Used The Trolley Car and Bus Co. for our company outing (we had them take us downtown for an architectural tour) and they were wonderful! Our driver was Kurt and he was early for each pick up, really nice and a good driver. Setting everything up was easy as well.
The trolley was clean and Kurt had nice jazz music playing; he did ask if we wanted the station changed but the music was fun.
I would definitely consider using Trolley Car & Bus Company again!

We used The Trolley Car the day of our wedding for transporting our bridal party between the ceremony/​reception/​picture locations and had an awesome time. The trolley arrived on time, was super clean (very important when wearing a big white dress :)), and well air-​conditioned. It was so nice to be able to spread out in the trolley and walk around (which we wouldn’t have been able to do with regular limos).
Our driver Ken was excellent and didn’t seem phased by our loud music, dancing, or use of the trolley bell (yes, there is a bell… it was awesome). We hit some pretty bad rain on the way to our reception venue, but Ken was the first one to jump off the trolley and make sure everyone had umbrellas to make it to the front door without getting wet.
Having a trolley as our transportation was one of the best decisions we made in our wedding planning process!

Loved it! Wife and I used it for wedding transportation and we’re both very pleased! The bus was on time, they let us keep it for little longer than what we reserved it for without a fee. Bus was beautiful, clean and just all around awesome! Highly recommended!

More like 4.5 stars…
We rented a trolley from Trolley Car & Bus Company for bridal party transportation for our wedding. The trolley was on time and the driver took us to multiple locations in the city for pictures. We hit a traffic jam and he pulled a u turn to get us out of the traffic! Much appreciated, as we didn’t have time to waste! The trolley was clean and air conditioned which was one of the main reasons we chose Trolley Car & Bus Co!
The only minor issue was some yellow dye got on my dress (thank god for shout wipes). I’m not 100% sure the yellow came from the trolley, but the trolley is bright yellow and it was slightly raining. Either way– it all worked out. I would hire them again.