2019-2020
Alexis ZhouCo-Founder / Co-President / VP Business Development
Hometown: Chongqing, China Years on MustBus: 2019-2022 Class of: 2022 Why did you found MustBus?
You could say that I was so traumatized by Greyhound and Port Authority that I started MustBus just so McGill students wouldn’t have to go through the same thing. Traveling around Quebec, Canada, and New England by bus or rail was such a headache— it felt impossible sometimes. Every time tickets sold out or prices shot up to ridiculous levels, I kept thinking how Canada has some of the worst intercity transportation in the world. I was reading Better Buses, Better Cities by Steven Higashide at the time, and it inspired me to stop whining and do something about it. So I thought, “Why not create our own intercity bus network at McGill, just like FlixBus, but non-profit and student-run?” I ran the numbers, saw it could work, and that’s how MustBus/McGill Bus Co-op got started. The rest is history. What was your favourite part of being on MustBus? Not being on the bus per se, but definitely running into a MUSTBUS by accident. The first time I saw one by chance was at the Vermont border, then again at Boston South Station, and another time, I even took one back from New York. Seeing MUSTBUS grow and actually run a better service than Greyhound and Megabus in many ways really made me proud. I thought, “We did it, MUSTBUS.” The best part is that most of its success now has nothing to do with me—MUSTBUS lives on, with continuity, regular funding, and an established network of routes. It’s become part of McGill’s social fabric. It's now an institution. What's your favourite memory/thing you accomplished while in MustBus? In February 2020, just before COVID shut down the world, was our first MustBus trip to New York. As our bus emerged from the Lincoln Tunnel, seeing all the traffic and buildings and people in front of us, another volunteer and I were listening to ‘Empire State of Mind’. That moment felt surreal—MUSTBUS actually made it to Manhattan. Our first bus to New York was $29 USD one-way per person, and we broke even. What are you doing now? Non-profit, journalism, community organizing, etc. I'm in a transition period in my life, so trying to figure it out. How do you think working on MustBus helped set you up for your future/career? Right after MustBus, I landed a full-time job at a Silicon Valley-ish bus start-up—without any networking, no LinkedIn, not even a CV. I literally just sent them a cold email, and they were so impressed by the concept of MustBus that they took me on (that's how much MUSTBUS helped me). Granted, it was a stroke of luck that most likely won't happen again today. The job was incredible—I got to strategize about buses, plan bus routes, and spend a lot of time taking buses across North America. I went from a social media NUMTOT to the centre of action in the North American intercity bus industry. Definitely one of the most exciting and meaningful jobs I’ve ever had. |
Matteo TrulliCo-Founder / Co-President
Hometown: Paris, France Years on MustBus: 2019-2021 Class of: 2021 Why did you found MustBus?
I founded Mustbus because I realized with Alexis a real need for traveling within North America. What was your favourite part of being on MustBus? Creating everything. Initially Mustbus was a startup legally created. Then when we started having too many buses chartered, because there is a legal monopoly given to Greyhound, I had to change the legal identity to a travel agency and then before leaving Alexis and I changed it to a coop within McGill and launched the fundraising through SSMU. What are you doing now? I am working in an accelerator and managing the acceleration of 3 startups per month all over the world. Inovexus.com How do you think working on MustBus helped set you up for your future/career? Mustbus was my first experience in entrepreneurship. I loved creating a team, a logo, and working on a project that could enable people to travel as much as possible. I am super proud of what it has become and what you guys are furthering. |
2021-2022
Arthur MarcelHometown: Paris, France
Years on MustBus: 2019-2022 Class of: 2022 Why did you join/found MustBus?
I felt at the time like I hadn’t gotten involved enough in the McGill community. And I felt like I wanted to leave a bit more of an imprint, a bit more of a legacy. Leave something that was still up and running that was still having an impact on students for after I left the university. What was your favourite part of being on MustBus? First of all, the impact we had on students. There clearly was a strong demand for our services and there clearly still is. And I liked the ability to be able to provide students with the ability to travel, discover North America through a low carbon / low emission transportation system. I know for the trips to New York we allowed a lot of students to go back to their hometown, potentially see their family and all that for very affordable prices. So the impact on students and also the ability to be working with really cool people from different nationalities, academic backgrounds. The relationships and the people I met throughout that experience was great. What's your favourite memory/thing you accomplished while in MustBus? So as I said earlier, Dimitri and I, we became presidents right after Covid. We actually had a meeting at the end of the school year in 2021, so the end of my 3rd year, and there was pretty much only three of us left. We had already done a trip, so we knew there was a high demand for our services, but during Covid a lot of the bus companies went bankrupt, all the borders closed, so we pretty much hadn’t done anything for almost a year and pretty much didn’t have anybody anymore. And so what we did was we decided we wanted to build up the club, build it up from what it was (which was pretty much nothing), and recruit a team. And so we did that, we recruited a team, and actually I think some of the members that we recruited are still currently on the team, including the president, who I had the chance of meeting on an online platform at the beginning of that year, my fourth-year. That was definitely the most empowering and interesting thing we got to do, was rebuilding the team and also trying to power up the brand and secure funding from McGill University. What are you doing now? I’m currently working at the Green Climate Fund in South Korea and what we do is we are funded by UN countries to invest in climate change mitigation and adaptation projects in developing countries. How do you think working on MustBus helped set you up for your future/career? I learned a lot, especially holding a leadership position. I learned a lot about creating a team, working on creating an inclusive work environment and also a productive work environment. And working with people from different cultures and different working styles, I think that taught me a lot. |
Dimitri YangCo-President / Senior Advisor
Hometown: Surrey, BC Years on MustBus: 2019-2023 Class of: 2022 Why did you join MustBus?
Mustbus had just started when I joined. I saw a lot of potential in it as an initiative. At the time, I also had a really bad recent experience with greyhound and wanted to be involved in providing students with affordable and reliable transportation. What was your favourite part of being on MustBus? It was my first time working on an entrepreneurial project and I enjoyed bring a part of a small team where you feel involved in every step of it. What's your favourite memory/thing you accomplished while in MustBus? Building up a passionate and hardworking team that took the initiative to the next level. What are you doing now? Currently in my 3rd year of mcgill med. How do you think working on MustBus helped set you up for your future/career? It was really my first leadership experience which helped me in other roles I've had later on. |
2022-2023
Raif HaddadCo-President / VP Finance
Hometown: Syria & Mississauga, ON Years on MustBus: 2021-2023 Class of: 2023 Why did you join MustBus?
Loved the idea of MustBus as I used to struggle both financially and in the terms of availability to go back home and see my family in Mississauga! Affordable transportation was very interesting to me and I loved the community-oriented goal MustBus had. What was your favourite part of being on MustBus? I loved how much MustBus was desired by our students and how many people believed in us! We grow super quickly and that was a joyful event for me. What's your favourite memory/thing you accomplished while in MustBus? Although I never want to claim as something to be a personal achievement as everything we did was team work, I was very involved in securing our funding and running negotiations with SSMU. I established the bank accounts and the government affiliations, then secured a contract with SSMU to lend us the money with 0% interest, as we get the fees late from students. Again, I can't claim it to be a personal accomplishment, but I was on the front line of its communication and application. What are you doing now? As of right now I run a Premed company (follow my page pls would love the support at @premedmentors_inc!) and I am a full time dental student at McGill as well (glad to be back!!) How do you think working on MustBus helped set you up for your future/career? To be honest MustBus was a major part of my resume! I find myself working with so many diverse people who taught me a lot about communication and leadership! Being a large scale association set my skill to lead my company right now and of course MustBus left me with many of my favorite memories ever! |
Sharleen SasisCo-President / VP Social Media / Marketing Coordinator
Hometown: Vancouver, BC Years on MustBus: 2019-2023 Class of: 2023 Why did you join MustBus?
I was a first-year student who wanted to get involved on campus and a friend approached me at BMH and pitched the beginnings of MustBus to me! What was your favourite part of being on MustBus? The camaraderie and the celebrations at Gerts - there’s something extraordinary about working alongside people who are driven by the same shared vision. What's your favourite memory/thing you accomplished while in MustBus? Helping with the launch of the first ever MustBus trip to New York City. I remember the days where it was just an idea - lots of brainstorming, and planning. As one of the junior members on the team at the time, I was in awe of how the more senior members handled challenges with such calmness. It reinforced for me how much teamwork and mentorship matter when bringing something like MustBus to life. What are you doing now? Working in environmental finance! How do you think working on MustBus helped set you up for your future/career? As co-president, I focused on coordinating a joint effort, where we leveraged individual skills and worked together toward achieving goals. This has been key in my professional life, as it reinforced the importance of effective teamwork and how a collective effort can lead to success. |
2023-2024
Chester ChauCo-President / VP Operations
Hometown: Hong Kong & Vancouver, BC Years on MustBus: 2021-2024 Class of: 2024 Why did you join MustBus?
It was 2021, my first year on campus and my first time in Montreal thanks to the Covid lockdown. Eager to get involved in campus life, I was casually browsing the different societies to join at McGill, and to be honest, it was not “love at first sight” with MustBus. At first, I was rather confused as to what it stood for and what it was about exactly. It was only after some time that I realized how fun it could be. After all, the co-op is about transportation, so is my major - Urban Studies! Having grown up in Hong Kong until my early adolescence, I really wanted to bring Hong Kong’s ease of travel to Canada, and I thought to myself, “maybe this could be the start!” Knowing that they were recruiting, I decided to give it a shot, and voilà. Totally no regrets. What was your favourite part of being on MustBus? Definitely witnessing how MustBus has grown over the years both as a co-op and as a team! I still vividly remember the countless challenges we faced while trying to regain funding and student support for our first post-Covid trial trip in 2021. Yet, we persevered and quickly became one of the most popular student services on campus within less than two year.Along the way, we also learned to build a stronger organization, from streamlining operations to becoming a full-fledged co-op with internal activities like the annual retreat that helped us grow closer as a team. Seeing how our McGill fellows appreciated our services and knowing that our hard work paid off always made my day. What's your favourite memory/thing you accomplished while in MustBus? Passing the Winter 2024 referendum to double the SSMU levy fee for more trips! Despite the fact that the levy fee was only established in 2022, we experienced exponential growth in demand and skyrocketing inflation within a year. This made expanding our services an urgent necessity, and I’m proud to have laid the foundation for more trips at lower prices in the years to come. Although having multiple members, including myself in the Netherlands, away on exchange made things more challenging for the team, we turned this disadvantage into an advantage by learning from Europe and introducing new features such as group tickets. This is just the beginning, and I’m excited to see what else we can introduce going forward. What are you doing now? I’m currently working remotely for a German transport software company called PSI Transcom and I plan to apply for master’s in Urban Planning after working for a year or two. How do you think working on MustBus helped set you up for your future/career? A lot! In fact, one of the key reasons why I got hired by the German company was because of my experience at MustBus. Instead of just hiring a random student, they were looking for someone with relevant experience in transportation. My work with MustBus definitely helped check the box. |
Henry ShapiroCo-President / VP Media
Hometown: Watford, UK Years on MustBus: 2021-2025 Class of: 2025 |
2024-2025
Drew CassettyCo-President / VP Operations
Hometown: New York City, USA Years on MustBus: 2023-2025 Class of: 2025 |
Henry ShapiroCo-President / VP Media
Hometown: Watford, UK Years on MustBus: 2021-2025 Class of: 2025 |