05-07-2025
- Politics
- Otago Daily Times
No go on Oamaru-Dunedin bus link
Hopes of Oamaru getting a direct bus service to Dunedin have been dashed for now, after the Otago Regional Council last week discarded proposals to establish a link.
Waitaki District Mayor Gary Kircher had lobbied strongly for the regional council to provide a bus service to Oamaru during its recent annual plan submissions but said he recognised the challenges of funding it.
"There's a lot of calls from other areas wanting to expand their services. For us, obviously, it's about starting a service and it's really difficult if the co-funder, (Waka Kotahi) NZTA, doesn't have the money there.
"Fundamentally, that's the issue and it's something that the government has to address because it's causing issues not just with public transport, but with projects everywhere.
"It would just be too expensive if ORC paid for the whole thing themselves without the co-funding. It would just be too costly on our ratepayers."
Mr Kircher had also submitted to the regional council about providing a connecter service between central Oamaru and the North End.
He told the Oamaru Mail that was a service that would need to be funded by ORC, not the district council.
"Again, it would come at a cost and public transport doesn't cover its costs, unfortunately. So, there has to be some other money coming from somewhere and with all of the pressure on rates, that'd be a difficult thing for the [district] council to be able to underwrite. It is a regional council responsibility."
Mr Kircher said he was meeting with regional council representatives and would be talking about what other opportunities there might be to "make something happen".
ORC chairwoman Gretchen Robertson said the council remained committed to connecting Oamaru.
"Some regional upgrades will not happen due to co-funding gaps but we're committed to finding ways to improve connectivity options for Ōamaru, Balclutha and Central Otago."
"The transport planning team will be investigating the cost and viability of connecting Oamaru to the existing Dunedin services, which currently terminate at Palmerston," she told the Oamaru Mail.
"There are a range of ways to do this — through traditional public transport, or community-based transport services.
"The investigative work the team will undertake will look at a range of options, including ones based on co-funding and ones not reliant on co-funding. Any decisions on funding additional services will be subject to future decisions through annual plans or long-term plans."
Transport Minister Chris Bishop said public transport was funded from both public and private revenue sources, noting government funding for public transport in Otago has increased from $90 million to $125m.
"Private share refers to the proportion of funding that comes from private sources, including fares paid by passengers, advertising on buses, bus stops, trains, train stations, as well as other commercial opportunities like renting or leasing commercial space," he said.
"The Government Policy Statement on land transport 2024 (GPS 2024) sets the expectation that there will be increases in private share revenue to support the growing operational costs for public transport, as well as to reduce the burden on ratepayers and taxpayers.
"Under the previous government the private share revenue dropped as low as 10%, meaning far more of the costs had to be covered by taxpayers and ratepayers.
"To reach agreement on targets, NZTA asked PTAs (public transport authorities) to show they had considered methods appropriate to each region that did not drive adverse outcomes such as patronage decline. Actions considered include reviews of fare policy, regular fare increases and third-party revenue sources. As a result, targets for the next three years have now been agreed.
"NZTA is committed to working with Public Transport Authorities to ensure a reliable and resilient public transport system for everyone. Increasing the private share of public transport expenditure can help contribute to this goal and I expect PTAs to continue working collaboratively with NZTA."
ORC rates to increase 5.5% overall
With the adoption of the annual plan, ORC rates will increase 5.5% overall in the year ahead.
For most in the Waitaki district, it means regional rates will rise 1.72% to $263.93 a year.
However, for Waitaki residents in the Palmerston area, the rate rise is more, up 6.18% to $381.33 a year. This is because Palmerston residents have an ORC-funded bus service to Dunedin.
However, they will also have to pay increased fares for that bus.
From late September, adult fares will rise from $2 to $2.50 (with a Bee card). Children will also have to pay, following another decision ORC councillors made last week, to reintroduce a $1.50 fare for 5 to 18-year-olds.
