In the middle of last year, Auckland Transport consulted on the new bus network for the North Shore. Now in a report to the open session of the AT board meeting today is an item with the outcome of the consultation (9.9MB).

At a high level:

  • AT had a massive response with over 3,100 responses which is huge considering the South and West Auckland consultations each only had around 1,000 responses.
  • In response to the question “Overall to what extent do you support or oppose the North Shore New Network?” 54% were in support and 34% opposed.
  • As a result of the feedback they’ve made changes to 21 of the 40 routes that were proposed in the consultation and have added two new routes although one route was removed. In addition 15 routes have had changes to their frequency or hours of operation.

Here’s what the final bus routes on the Shore will look like

North Shore New Network Final

As a comparison here’s what the route maps currently look like. It’s a much busier map which largely because there are a lot of infrequent services that wind their way through the suburbs.

North Shore Current Buses

One of the key principles of the new network is to make use of transfers to get better use out of buses so that rather than running multiple buses infrequently in all directions, buses run to fewer locations but more frequently with transfers to extend the reach of PT routes.

Principles of the New Network model

Of course competing with this, many people want buses to travel express from their local stop to their destination. As such AT received a number of pieces of feedback to retain or create express services. Positively it appears they’ve resisted the urge to do this as it would likely have both increased costs and AT say in their report that it would have put even more buses on already busy city streets. With the exception of the Western North Shore and a few other locations, most services will feed into a busway station – like buses will do with trains in the South and the West. To ensure there is adequate space for people transferring from feeder buses in the mornings, AT say some busway buses will start at Constellation or other intermediate stations.

The busway itself will get a boost with multiple Northern Express (NEX) routes so services to the city will be even more frequent than they are now – although different services from across the Shore to the city will use different routes. This is shown below but essentially the NEX 1 and the frequent services from Onewa Rd will go to lower Albert St like they’ve started doing since the change for the CRL works. The NEX 2 (former 881) and other buses from the shore will loop through the middle of town while a few services like the NEX 3 will go via Ponsonby and K Rd to Newmarket however these will only operate on weekdays. A small note says that whether they go via Ponsonby Rd or not will depend on bus priority investigations.

North Shore New Network Final - City

AT say that to implement the new network they’ll need 100-150 new or relocated bus stops and likely some other minor infrastructure too such as bus layover facilities, and bus priority.

It’s hard to say just what impact the new network will have but AT estimate the should achieve about a 15% increase in bus use during the morning peak within 12-18 months of implementation which would be the equivalent to about 1,000 cars.

But it will still be some time away before these changes take place. AT say the procurement for the North Shore is likely to happen at the end of this year with the new network rolled out in early 2018. The network that’s is to be approved will result in around a 20% increase in service kilometres being run and about a 15% increase in the number of hours they run for compared to what currently exists. AT managed to save $3 million a year on the South Auckland contracts so I imagine they’ll be needing the same levels of savings from buses on the Shore to help pay for that.

Lastly here is a view of the new route map showing the changes that were made, what do you think about them?

North Shore New Network Final - with comments

Share this

100 comments

  1. The lack of a transfer point at the bottom of Onewa (aka a busway station) sticks out like a sore thumb and goes against the principles of their network design. Did anyone see this being addressed in the report?

  2. That comprehensively illustrates the lack of a busway station at the bottom of Onewa Road. Plain and simple.

    1. Yes you would have thought this would be an important issue in the report from the designers but I see no mention of it at all.

      1. My understanding is that pretty much everyone who knows anything about public transport on the shore supports the construction of the onewa rd bus station, as originally proposed with the northern busway. I also understand that it was dropped due to vocal local yokel opposition from northcote pt residents.

        1. Mine too but now its over a decade later and we are trying to implememt a proper network. Dont we have a CCO to sort this now?

        2. I wonder what is the status on those yokels.

          With the new network, from Birkenhead you can still go to the city, and that’s it. There is hardly any connection with the busway and with the east coast. Both problems can be solved by having a place to transfer south of Onewa Road.

        3. I guess “the place to transfer south of Onewa Rd” is over the bridge, called Britomart! Do people do this currently earlier on Fanshawe St? If so how long does it take I wonder?

        4. Highbury to Browns Bay was almost always faster via Vic Park when I made the trip.

    2. Perhaps rather than running into the city due to lack of NEX transfer at onewa, to be consistent with the new network design, western shore busses should have fed up to transfer at akoranga. Bet youd see allot of noise for a better located onewa rd station then

  3. 7pm is too early to start cutting the frequency and why i use the car. Hourly frequency or less, if they turn up, is next to useless. It is not a proper public transport system unless it it is available during the times of the day that people travel, not just to work and back, and is useful. It would be great to head out for a quick coffee or bite to eat on the bus, oh but wait i cant as the bus doesnt come for another hour….

    Driving into the city and uni at night wont be changing for a while, it is going to cost me even more now that the parking is going up.

    Buses need to be available outside of peak hours so people have a choice.

    1. Well not exactly sure how you’re managing to pay for parking when on-street is free around the university after 6pm. Further, the NEX runs well into the night at high frequency. Do agree that buses need to be higher-frequency later into the night around Auckland in general, and move away from this mentality of transit being useful only as a way to deal with congested periods on the roads to a view of it being a choice for any journey through the day and evening.

      1. There is more than one university campus in auckland. I agree the NEX does run later but how,do i get to the interchange? And that doesnt help trying to get from rosedale to birkenhead, ironically to the BBC

        1. Yeah the NEX runs the latest but very few people can access the NEX without a long walk, driving or taking a feeder bus. Many feeder buses should run later than the NEX IMO, so people getting even the later NEX buses can actually connect somewhere.

          Same principal applies to the rest of Auckland. Though unfortunately West and South have it the other way around as trains finish around 10pm and some of the proposed feeders at midnight… AT planner was telling me they were looking at a rail replacement bus-style solution in the interim until trains run until midnight. Hows that going to work? By bus to Papakura, Henderson or Swanson takes forever, unless you run direct, but then you would need to run direct buses to every station equalling tons of buses… and not to mention confusion.

    2. Bob they aren’t cutting frequency after 7pm, they’re increasing frequency before 7pm. After 7pm it will still be as good or better than it is now. All the buses still run in the evening, just not at high frequency.

      1. Nick R, outside the good NEX serice, I believe Bob wants better, not still as good as now because as he said that ain’t great. And as someone who’s worked shifts on the Shore I can understand his point.

        1. Ok sure, but you have to realise this isn’t a plan to spend heaps more money running zillions of new buses. Its a re organisation of the network to get more service with the same amount of buses and same amount of cost.

          Its all well and good saying you’d like frequent service on every street on the north shore till midnight, but that’s not realistic without a huge increase in funding.

      2. I’ve seen some services cut back 3-4 hours in the new network proposals (e.g. from midnight back to 8:30pm), despite feedback, how is that “good or better”?

  4. The new N25 service from Beach Haven to Takapuna is borderline bonkers. It already takes close to an hour from Beach Haven to Takapuna by bus. Outside rush hour it’s about 10 minutes in a car. Routing the service through Glenfield will make it harder and longer. I realise the anti-clockwise loop is the same as before, but that’s an hourly service. Overall it increases return trip times to the point where it simply doesn’t make sense to leave the car at home. The last time I did the trip by bus for a 30 minute appointment I was gone close to four hours, would be less than one hour by car and potentially cheaper too.

    Also, it looks like some Beach Haven buses will still make surprise detours down to the wharf (which often also means a five to ten minute wait). There’s no apparent logic to these detours and the bus displays don’t warn if you’re in for an unexpected 20 minute journey extension.

    1. If you can get from takapuna tobeachaven in ten minutes then the new bud network is the last of your concerns.

        1. Rounding. How many decimal points of precision do you demand to accept something? Do you consider $19.99 to be meaningfully different from $20?

          I was also rounding on bus times. Last trip it took a little over one hour 15 minutes from home to Takapuna. I know how long it took because I was late for an appointment. It usually takes two or three minutes over an hour – but why quibble? The point here is driving means I can get there and back, do my appointment in less time than it takes to get there by bus. That’s the important point.

        2. Yes. But it didn’t take me 17 minutes, it took me 13. I timed the last trip and it’s the same. No jumping red lights, no speeding. I admit you need a clear run with no traffic and luck at the lights, but that can happen. And the difference compared with travelling by bus is enormous.

        3. Something I’ve been more aware of lately: With the car trips did u also factor the time & $ to fill with petrol, maintain tyre pressure, check oil & fluids take to the garage for a service and pick up again. Wash weekly or so, vac, wipe, insurer it, hunt 4 new car & sell old, park it, find keys lost. Take for 6 monthly warrants. Pay rego online or in person. Pay AA membership, call AA when wife flattens battery, clean out kids mess from back. Move in driveway so kids can play on their bikes. Renew drivers licence, repair Broken things, dings. On bus u can read & write hopefully not get so tired driving. Keep fitter from walking to connections. Take up less space on da road, more green using existing service.

        4. …oh forgot importantly: time & money to pay for parking and walking to and from it, which sometimes is a miserable experience inside a dark, gas fume filled parking building. ps Bill, I think I have a copy still of your co-authored book “The Usborne guide to understanding the micro” somewhere in the house.

    2. Going ten kilometres across town in ten minutes means constantly speeding, running every red light and overtaking every single other car on the road so you can average 60km/h!

    3. The significance of the N25 is that you can now get from Beach Haven / Birkdale to Glenfied Mall via the Kaipatiki Bridge on a bus, rather than having to go to Highbury and change service. The other half of the N25 loop (which runs both clock wise and anti-clockwise) is pretty much the same as the existing 975/976. And if it doesn’t go the way you want it, just change service part way, without being charged for an extra leg.

      1. They’ve done what PT planners always do to save money, roll a couple routes into one then have them go on a horrendous tiki tour around the suburbs and say they’ve improved things. There is no way this route will much good for commuters who just want to get to work in Takapuna quickly. Bill is absolutely right on this one.

        1. I disagree with you here. That N25 is basically two crosstown routes joined together at each end. Look at is for a second, the northern half goes from Beach Haven to Glenfield, then to Smales Farm and the busway, then on to Takapuna. All by more or less the most direct route possible given the road network in the area. So if you live in Beach Haven you can go straight to your closest town centre and mall, then onwards to the busway interchange station at Taka. Moreover, people who live in between also get that connectivity. Live around Chivalry Rd area and you get an awsome route, one way to Glenfield, the other a shuttle to the busway and Takapuana.

          On the southern half, it does Beach Haven to Highbury, Northcote, then Akoranga busway station and AUT, then on to Takapuna. Again basically in a straight line along the main roads. About the only ‘tiki tour’ it does is passing through Hillcrest instead of going straight along College Rd, which people asked for in consultation, but I imagine this route will be very useful to people in Hillcrest given the straight link to all those places.

          Personally I don’t know if this should be one loop or two separate lines from Beach Haven to Takapuna, probably doesn’t matter. But if you ask me the only thing wrong with the N25 is that it isn’t a frequent service, and I expect it is one that would become frequent soon.. Unfortunately that part of the shore still has a lot of small lines with direct service to town, so perhaps those gobbled up all the resources.

        2. Whats the frequency of the N25 and how long will it take to get ttakapuna from beachhaven. If you time it wrong you could be transiting for over an hour and a half each way at least.Its cases like this which are a waste of time and why people will still use their car.

          The only people who will use this or able to use it are old people on their bus pass who see the bus ride as part of the fun.you couldnt use this route to commute.

        3. “But if you ask me the only thing wrong with the N25 is that it isn’t a frequent service, and I expect it is one that would become frequent soon..”

          Does that depend on whether it is used or not?

    1. @transportblog folk – do you think you could potentially do a quick blog post to remind people it’s last chance to have a say? Or did this have enough publicity?

  5. This is absolute crap. I live on wairau road and frequently go to albany from my place and now they are taking that route away and going to make it go to constellation station. I see no reason for the 891 route changing. It is the only one that goes from albany to takapuna and now i will have to transfer buses making life harder and longer waiting for more buses to where i want to go. I already have to walk 10 mins in either direction if i want to get to glenfield mall on a bus. Absolutely shit!

    1. The idea is that with integrated ticketing it won’t matter if you change buses as it will still be the same fare

      1. 99% of commuters want to get from A to B as fast as possible and not be pissing around transferring to another bus, whenever that may show up.

        1. Of course they do. 99% of people want to be there immediately any time they want to travel, with a glass of free champagne and a pat on the back too. However that is completely irrelevant because it’s impossible to give everyone a bus from where they are to where they want to be at all times. We tried that model, and you end up with a bus maybe once every hour at best that can take you to a few places you might want to go, or in many cases you only get one or two buses a day on weekdays.

          If you look at Stacey’s post not only is she asking for a direct bus from Wairau Rd to Albany, but also a direct bus from Wairau Rd to Glenfield. So that’s two buses running on Wairau Rd to two different routes. Ok, and what about her neighbours, maybe one wants to go to downtown, another wants to go to Takapuna, a third wants to go to HIghbury. Do we run five bus lines on Wairau Rd to five different locations? DO we do the same for every street in Auckland? How much would that all cost, how empty would the buses be?

          Its a geometric impossibility to run routes from everywhere to everywhere affordably. Using connections is the only way buses in Auckland can get better than they are today (well either that of we strike oil and can subsidise the living bejesus out of them).

          So sure, plenty of people are lucky enough to have something that works now. And a few of those might find it works less well under the new network. But for every one of those people, there are a hundred other people for whom transit doesn’t work now but for whom its about to get better.

        2. You will not entice people out of their cars if the choice is the AT way or the highway. Buses get held up in traffic all day every day (the CBD is living proof of this) and transfers do not always synchronise and therefore are not reliable, I know this to be a fact as I worked in PT. The only way to guarantee it is if the transfer bus arrives well after the expected arrival time of the feeder bus to take into account delays. And what if the transfer bus arrives before its feeder bus, does it sit there and wait? As I said people do not want to piss about going to their destinations!

        3. There won’t be synchronisation, thats the point of the frequent network. Its frequent so you don’t have to time to a specific connection.

          Ok so what do we do then? What is your plan to improve public transport (without needing a huge subsidy increase which AT cannot fund)?

    2. If you really want a one-seat ride, you can still stay on the N6 all the way to Takapuna from Albany. Otherwise it’ll be quicker for you to get the NX to Smales and transfer from there

  6. I hope after this largesse there are a few crumbs left for those of us out west. Unlikely. NEX = sexy, 243 = not

    1. Largesse? Oh please. How about a billion dollars spent on the rail network? NEX=western rail line, you should compare a local bus on the north shore to your local bus.

        1. There is a park n ride at the closest train station to you, you just have to pay $4 to use it. Also only some of the NEX stations have P&R

        2. Only the two end stations on the NEX have park and ride. The end of the western line also has free park and ride.

          You are lucky to have paid park and ride in the middle of the western line, the people around sunnynook and smalls farm don’t have that option.

  7. I am not surprised with the high amount of feedback from the vocal North Shore residents. Shame to see so many compromises to the network as a result.

    I am amazed at the NEX3 route going from the Shore along Ponsonby Rd to Newmarket. The patronage for this will be tiny. Such an odd route option to cover off getting Shore people to Nmkt (like the old 881 via downtown, Uni to Nmkt).

    Will be interesting to see how successful this will be as it seems like it should be an infrequent route, not a frequent one and definitely not an NEX branded route.

      1. Oh, it does go past the hospital but such a convoluted route to get there, unless they’re going to put bus lanes onto Ponsonby Road? I used to catch a bus along there a long time ago. It was painfully slow.

        1. See below, but also: “Feedback also requested that the NX2 route should continue to Newmarket, as the current
          881 route does. However, it would have not been affordable to operate every trip through to
          Newmarket, and if only selected trips included this extension, there is still a risk that
          passengers for Auckland City Hospital and Newmarket would be left behind due to buses full
          of passengers to earlier destinations. Some feedback was received from passengers who
          have experienced this, and welcomed a service that will not go via the universities.”

        2. Since when did AT get to decide that passengers travelling to Newmarket get a higher priority service than those going to the University? Or am i missing something

        3. Yes, like the whole of the network really. Is it true it is really just to control congestion rather than be world class? Saw this on Twitter or somewhere quoting a document….somewhere.

        4. That is a weird explanation. I thought the main advantage is that it’s easier to reach Ponsonby and Karangahape Road via these services.

          This is my recommended trip from Newmarket to the Shore:

          1) take a bus to Symonds Street;
          2) transfer to a North Shore bus of choice.

          Advantages over the NX3 & N93:

          1) a lot more than 2 routes to choose from;
          2) you don’t get stuck in the queue at the Curran Street on-ramp. I’ve heard bad things about that one.

        5. I wonder if symonds st would get too maxed out as well if all via there. Anyway gives more coverage overall.

      2. It does – over Grafton Bridge and along Park Rd in front of the hospital. If it’s anything like the 966 / N93 service then most of it’s patronage will come from hospital staff – so why not take it through to Newmarket anyway.

        1. In the document it covers all this: “No changes to this service from what was proposed.
          This route is designed to connect to Auckland City Hospital and Newmarket, while bypassing
          the City universities in the Learning Quarter. This is to ensure that passengers wanting to
          travel through to the hospital and Newmarket are not crowded out by those travelling to the
          universities.
          Services will operate in both directions all day, Monday to Friday only. Currently the service
          from Newmarket to the busway via Ponsonby only operates at peak times, in the peak
          direction.
          Bus priority measures are being investigated to address congestion in the evening peak
          along Ponsonby Rd, Jervois Rd and Curran St.”

    1. The NX3 follows current route of the 966. Unfortunately in the afternoon it can take a long time to drive from Ponsonby to the bridge along that route. Obvious question: are there a lot of people going from the Shore directly to Ponsonby? Otherwise, merge with the NX2 and extend that one to Newmarket.

      Ideally, instead of both the we could have just one service going that way, and people may transfer to that service at Onewa Road station. A good description of that option (with sound) here: https://wompwompwomp.com/

      How I’d go is take the NX2 and transfer on Symonds Street, there’s plenty of buses going to the hospital there. That will be faster than going via either Britomart or Ponsonby. But unless we somehow still manage to implement integrated ticketing it’s also going to be an expensive option. And you’d need to figure out which buses go there.

  8. Time to connect up the two halves of Kyle Road in Greenhithe. The the two residential areas either side of the gap dont get any buses. The people just north of the gap have a long walk to Schnapper Rock Rd.

  9. Nex 3 is a great idea and will make it much easier for people to get to the social hot spots rather than getting bailed up in the cbd and dealing changing buses

  10. At the risk of starting more North Shore special pleading, another flaw in the plan is that many of the swap over bus stops are not adequately covered from the rain. Highbury has decent large shelters on both sides of Highbury Road, but that’s rarely the case anywhere else.

    1. That’s the case across the region, and it is being addressed. See the comment on 150 new or improved stops above.

  11. Interesting that with the design Sunnynook only gets one connecting service, the N44 (or am I missing something?)

    1. I hope you’re missing something. wasn’t the whole point of the new bus network to better integrate buses with the rapid network, in this case the NEX line.

      1. I obviously Dont live on the shore as I’ve now figured out this station is the smallest one with no local bus access directly. Some stops on road crossing nearby above though.

      2. I don’t live on the shore but the only times I have done a NEX + Feeder is the 555 from Sunnynook to go to a shop and from HC Station. It’s bizarre how Sunnynook doesn’t have much in the way of connections, the stops on Sunnynook road are more than close enough.

    2. Yes, in my submission I reminded them that about 20 years ago when the busway was originally being promoted we were shown a route layout with a North-South spine and high-frequency East-West ribs (including strong feeder bus routes through Sunnynook station), thus requiring only 1 transfer from anywhere on the shore to the CBD/city fringe (I think I’ve still got the brochure somewhere). We still haven’t got it; and the western side of the shore is still badly served, and severed, to/from the eastern side.

      People in Waiake will have to transfer twice to get to/from the CBD instead of the direct expresses to/from the CBD they have now (in peak). People I know say it will take so long for a bus-load of people to change buses at transfer points, if each has to try their HOP cards multiple times until the reader makes the right beep going off and on, that the journey times will take far too long compared to the direct expresses now, so they will have to buy cars and drive if this new network comes into force. (It’s not “whims” – those direct expresses from Torbay and Browns Bay are very well patronised and make a real difference to congestion on the feeder roads to the motorway, which will be made much worse if people decide they have to abandon the bus for cars.) In my submission, I suggested that they retain an overlay of peak direct expresses, as the multiple transfer system won’t be desirable or functional in time-sensitive peak commuting times to the CBD/city fringe.

      1. Man that N41 is a long route & will prove unreliable though? Though I note they will run extra shorter ones at peak. Perhaps it could of been broken into two different routes, one continuing up Brown Bay Rd to join East Coast Rd and finish at Constellation Station. Another from Rothesay/Murray’s Bay going to Smales Farm. Then we’d end up with some duplication of the N62, but at the same time the current situation duplicates the frequent N6.

        1. I’ve waited for the current version of that route (the 839 I think) a couple of times in Milford.

          Or not. Track-my-bus confirmed that bus was still somewhere around Murrays Bay when it was supposed to show up. Oops. That time I drove my car to the city, in less time than the time it would take to wait for that bus.

  12. I can’t believe there isn’t a bus that caters to my VERY SPECIFIC whims. I’m never catching public transport again!

  13. The N42 will be absolutely rammed – as in schoolkids waiting an hour – from Westlake unless there multiple buses at the time. Currently there are 3-4 routes that service Forrest Hill road at school time (874, 873, 879, 875, 877), with no dedicated school bus for that road. I hope this has been considered.

  14. The changes to the N41 at least a welcome – while the NEX is great for getting people into the CBD the N41 is good for linking the bays together. Nice to see Waiake get it’s service back down Beach Road. Good replacement for the 858

    1. I hope AT markets the N41 as a scenic tour of the East Coast Bays (provided, of course, that it’s not operated by buses with overtinted windows obscured by logos and advertising).

      1. Yeah, from Waiake to get to the Albany busway station on the N41, one would have to go north to Long Bay to go south to Albany – crazy. It may be possible to change buses at Torbay or Browns Bay or Mairangi Bay, if the timings were right, but that’s a lot of travelling and stopping and waiting to go not very far – surely this will make journey times longer than they are now. No wonder the service kms are 20% more than at present (whereas AT expect only a 15% increase in passengers – so does this mean the new network is expected to have less passengers per service km, i.e., be less efficient overall?)!

  15. Sigh, well they’ve responded to my concern that people up in the bays near Beach road have no direct route to supposed hub of Takapuna (I would have had to take two buses to get to it from Castor Bay – ridiculous) but alas, with the revised N41 they’ve effectively re-offered the accursed 858 route which goes through Smales Farm and the Hospital. That is hopeless since I avoid the 858 like the plague now. It is incredibly lengthy journey for the distance involved. I suppose at least it is more frequent outside of rush hour at once every 30mins (joke). Time to dust off the second car…

    1. Depending on timing, may be better to catch the N41 and quick transfer to the N4 or N46 even, worth a try.

      1. Thanks Grant for the suggestion but I wouldn’t want to wait in the hope that another bus arrives promptly (same problem with the initial proposal). e.g. Last night my 822 bus was 30mins late despite the app telling me it was 5mins away etc…

      1. Yes, I considered that but I would freak out with the amount of traffic and narrow roads – call me risk averse! 🙂 Maybe a segue…look like a plonker though.

  16. I live in Moorgreen Heights, Torbay and often catch the 881 when its running (or drive to a bus stop to catch the 76 or 85).

    It looks like they’ve taken away the bus stops on Glenvar/Ashley Ave and up the top of Glenvar near Fitzwilliam (which is a 10 minute walk)?

    My nearest bus stop will now be Ian Sage/County Rd – three times the distance, quite a hike due to the hills. In the summer, or daylight hours, I can’t even walk through the Awaruku Reserve from Moorgreen to Awaruku to catch a bus there, as those stops and the bus route has been removed.

    The 881 (which looks like it will be replaced by the new N41) is currently full with University students when I finish work at 2pm on Fridays – I can’t even get on a bus.

    So instead of taking me 50 minutes to get home, it takes me 1hr 45. I have to catch an NEX from Britomart to Albany, then wait a minimum 20-30 mins for an 881 to get to Torbay.

    Is this an example of what my service is going to be like when the changes are made?

    1. To me it looks like an improvement for you. The N41 is your local link between Albany Station and your place. To be it looks like the N41 will still go via Ashley Ave then Glenvar Rd so still at the end of your street?

      Heading home you just jump on whichever NX bus shows up first and switch at Albany. Your “minimum wait” for what is now the 881 is exacerbated because you currently only attempt to catch NEX to Albany *after* you can’t board the previous 881, right?

      Even today, on Friday if you didn’t even attempt to get the 881 and went straight for the NEX, you’d get on an earlier NEX, in front of your otherwise-intended 881, and be able to board that 881 at Albany. It’d be similar with the N41.

      1. Yes, the N41 still goes via the 881 route near me. But they have taken away the bus stops nearer to me. So instead of a 10 min walk to the nearest bus stop to my home, I will now have a 30 minute one (according to their map), with steep hills.

        Yes, I could just take the NEX home from the City immediately rather than waiting for an 881 I am unable to get on. However, the N41 runs every 30 minutes from Albany. I might be lucky and the NEX gets me in to Albany to connect with a just departing N41, but the reality is I might have to wait 30 minutes for the next one (just like happens now). Then a 30 minute walk home from the bus stop nearest my home.

        Changing buses for most passengers is highly inefficient , waiting for connections etc. Plus how is Albany platform going to cope with bus loads of passengers being decanted on it during peak time? It gets overcrowded now.

        1. If you take 30 minutes to walk less than 1km then you are on the extreme end of walking speed. Also, this network is designed to maximise bus use, you may have a slight disadvantage, but thousands of others will get a big advantage.

        2. My walking speed is best described as average. However, Google maps doesn’t take into consideration the fact that the hills are pretty damned steep, which slows the average walker down somewhat.

          I don’t know anyone living in my area who sees this as an improvement.

        3. Surely there will be replacement bus stops fairly equivalent to where you can reach now. I would guess on Ian Sage Ave or maybe top of Stredwick Dr?

  17. I think as a general comment the new service plan should do a better job for most people (and may entice a few out of their cars) but, as the comments here testify, has made some existing bus commuters worse off, including myself (thereby compelling them back into their cars). Nick R, who I suspect works for AT, has made the point that there is limited revenue to improve things. Moreover, congestion means that the services will probably continue to be unreliable if more frequent. Of course the simple response to both these issues is to levy the endless trail of single user motorists (fuel or congestion tax) who clog the roads for buses but there is no political will for that in Wellington it seems.

    1. No I don’t work for AT, but I am a transport planner and work with these sorts of network design and funding issues on a daily basis.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *