Wainuiomata bus services monitored

Wed, 07 Jul 2010 00:00:00 +1200

Greater Wellington Regional Council and Valley Flyer are working to improve the reliability of some Wainuiomata bus services following complaints by passengers and concerns from drivers.

Peter Glensor, Chair of Greater Wellington’s Access and Transport Committee, said particular problems had emerged with the Route 170, which runs from Sunny Grove to Queensgate, via Waterloo Interchange, after changes to services were introduced in February this year.

“We have received complaints from passengers and we were recently informed by Valley Flyer that drivers were having difficulty trying to meet the tight timeframes. We have identified what needs to be done and are now working to ensure services are more reliable, especially in terms of meeting train connections.

“Greater Wellington staff have monitored Route 170 (Wainuiomata South) services and expect to complete monitoring of Route 160 (Wainuiomata North) services soon. The monitoring has confirmed that drivers are often unable to reach Sunny Grove from Queensgate before the return trip is scheduled to begin. This problem is worse at peak times.”

The following changes to the route are being considered:

The bus service may loop around Sunny Grove, Coast Road and Wood Street once per return trip in a clock-wise direction. Monitoring has shown that some drivers are already doing this in attempt to keep on time.
The Parenga Street bus stop may be removed. This would affect about 100 households, almost all of whom will still be within five minutes walk of a bus stop. All the affected households should have received a letter about this recently, asking for their feedback.

Cr Glensor said these changes are necessary to help speed up travelling times and give drivers some catch-up time in case of delays.

The changes would be made as soon as practically possible. “Changes need to be agreed with and approved by the operator, timetables need to be designed and produced, and passengers need to be informed.”

Metlink News

Wainuiomata bus services monitored