Next Steps Towards More And Quicker Bus Trips

Scoop

6 days ago

Greater Wellington Regional Council/ Metlink/ Wellington City Council – Joint news release:
Plans for a long-awaited second Wellington city centre bus route running along the waterfront quays are beginning to take shape, and the Capital's two councils will decide in August whether to progress them.
Greater Wellington Regional Council Chair Daran Ponter says the second bus priority route is the only way to grow Wellington's bus network.
'This is not a nice-to-have, it's a must. Without critical improvements to the Golden Mile and an established Harbour Quays spine, the logjam of buses through the city will make it impossible to deliver the bus capacity Wellington needs,' says Cr Ponter.
'It's time for faster, more frequent buses and less reinventing of plans and investigations that lead to the same conclusions. People in Wellington don't want more failed transport plans, they want better bus services.'
Wellington Mayor Tory Whanau says the proposed creation of a new waterfront bus route will anticipate the increasing demands on the city's roading infrastructure.
'This new bus route will offer a high-capacity, reliable, and environmentally friendly transport alternative.
'If the Council gives its green light in August, we will be engaging with Wellingtonians about the new route and their insights will be invaluable,' adds Mayor Whanau.
Ahead of meetings in August, elected members from the Regional Council and City Council are being updated this week on the proposed Harbour Quays corridor, including stop locations and the services likely to use the route initially. Both councils have provided for funding of the route in their long-term plans.
They will consider the business case for the project in August and, if agreed, consultation with businesses and the community on the proposed street changes required to put improved bus stops and shelters in place will follow. It's hoped the route can be operational from December 2026.
It will:
provide quicker journey times for bus passengers travelling along the Golden Mile and the waterfront quays
provide all-day, 7-day a week access to waterfront attractions
take pressure off the Golden Mile route where buses already have to queue to stop, and footpaths at bus stops can be very congested at times.
Council officers speaking at today's briefing said work to assess corridor options had shown the best and only really viable route was via Whitmore Street, Customhouse Quay, Jervois Quay, Cable Street and Wakefield Street, connecting into the city-end of Kent and Cambridge terraces.
It is proposed 12 stops, some of which are existing, will be put in place or improved along the route – six on each side. All will either have bus shelters or cover from building canopies. Peak-hour bus lanes on some sections are also being recommended.
The stops will serve destinations including Te Papa and Tākina, Queens Wharf and Te Ngākau Civic Square.
If approved, the waterfront route would be used at first by existing express services, including the Airport Express, an all-day harbourside service, and by peak-hour services that currently end at Brandon Street, which would instead be extended to Kent Terrace.
Initially, it is proposed the route would carry about a quarter of peak-time bus users, about 30 buses an hour.
From about 2034 and beyond, as the population and public transport use grows, it is planned the number of services using the waterfront route would increase to carry about 60 buses per hour, and about 60 percent of bus passengers.