A tour company that runs double-decker buses is under investigation for ripping off hordes of tourists — by promising live guides who really know the city but delivering confusing canned audio and attendants who spout profanity, The Post has learned.
Agents for GO New York Tours seek customers in Times Square and other tourist centers, offering guided tours of Manhattan and Brooklyn.
They say the buses make multiple stops and people can get off to explore on foot, then board the next bus, with, at most, a 15-minute wait.
But riders said during peak seasons the waits could be up to two hours.
Agents, who are promised a 30-percent commission, often say a tour guide will supplement canned audio in many languages.
Girl Scout troop leader Christine Dietrich was one of 280,000 customers last year. She paid $196 for eight tickets.
Her group got off near Macy's and "every bus that pulled up was full," she said. "We waited there for 90 minutes in the scorching-hot sun of July."
Dietrich's bus, which skipped some promised stops, had no tour guide — just a ticket agent. At one point, the kids spotted what they thought was the Freedom Tower and asked her if they were right.
"She said she had no clue," said Dietrich. "Then said she heard about 9/11 on TV." The guide took out a container and begged for tips between expletive-filled conversations on her cellphone in front of the kids.
The view from inside a GO New York Tours busPhoto: David McGlynn
The company — which is being probed by the Consumer Affairs department and got an "F'' rating from the Better Business Bureau — promised to refund Dietrich's money after an inquiry from The Post. Other customers who persist in asking for their money say they're offered a free bus trip sometime in the next two to three years.
A reporter who rode the bus was promised a guide who would discuss iconic buildings.
But the bus had only an English-language audio. In Times Square it droned on about Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn. The only sight the driver pointed out was John's Pizza in Greenwich Village.
Troy Morehouse, 29, of upstate Alfred, did get a tour guide but was appalled at what he said.
"When we drove through Harlem, a guide talked about it being poor because it was all blacks who lived here," said Morehouse. "When we were traveling through Chinatown, the tour guide commented on the ability to get cheaper deals because they don't know English."
The rides are a far cry from the fun trip pitched to Post reporter Kevin Fasick.Photo: David McGlynn
GO spokeswoman Lisa Linden said, "Inevitably there will be a relatively small number of people who will find fault with that service."
Former workers said owner Asen Kosadinov stiffs his employees about as often as he does his customers.
"He's a caricature," said a former supervisor. "It's insane. The vendors have to run as soon as they basically sold a ticket."
Additional reporting by Lorena Mongelli
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