Weekly Review No.13
This week Panmure Station gears up for the Eastern Line reopening, will MPs ride Metlink's Airport Express? and how is the Paraparaumu transport hub tracking?
We're on the brink of our Christmas break, with just three editions left before the summer hiatus. Stay in the loop on Twitter [X] for real-time updates throughout the week. Meanwhile, dive into this week's edition of the Weekly Review.
Auckland One Rail and Auckland Transport have installed updated General and Emergency information posters inside Auckland’s train fleet.
The new posters feature the new single-colour AT logo and the Auckland Council family pohutukawa logo.
Greater Wellington chair Daran Ponter has sent new Members of Parliament a Snapper card, preloaded with $20, to encourage them to jump on board Metlink’s Airport Express as they travel between the Beehive and the boarding gate.
Kāpiti Coast District Council have posted a video update on the Paraparaumu transport hub.
Crews are laying the new pavement in the plaza area with the transport hubs on track to open within a couple of months.
Auckland Transport have finally updated the route wayfinding at Henderson Station.
Until recently old routes had been taped over, on launch day only the stop flag had been updated with old signs remaining up about the stop.
Ticket gate installation at Panmure Station is almost complete, according to new photos posted to Twitter [X] by @catniptf2 & @2018Express.
The installation wrapping up is key as the Eastern Line reopens following the Rail Network Rebuild in 45 days [as of posting].
Auckland Council and City Rail Link have announced they will be reinstating the plaza behind the Waitematā Station (Britomart).
CRL will begin removing temporary structures sitting over the station early in the new year. Auckland Council is aiming to begin construction of the plaza and Tyler Street in April 2024 with likely completion early to mid-2025.
Tauranga City Council have delayed the roll-out of part-time bus lanes on Cameron Road, the time-limited bus lanes on Cameron Road were scheduled to begin operation in January 2024.
The news in Tauranga comes hot on the tails of this news out of Auckland that AT that are installing a new bus lane on Triangle Road.
The new eastbound (city-bound) bus lane will be constructed between the Huruhuru Creek bridge and Lincoln Road and will operate during the morning & afternoon peak Monday to Friday.
Auckland Transport have updated its full network map.
The map shows changes to the Northwest & West Auckland bus networks post WX1 launch, the 995 travelling via the new SH1 toll road to Warkworth, AT Local zone in Takaanini & Papakura the map is not without issue as it incorrectly shows the 376 continuing to Pukekohe where it should say 394.
The New Zealand Herald have gone underground to speak with City Rail Link chief executive Dr Sean Sweeney and Auckland Transport executive Mark Lambert who provided an update on the progress of the Auckland rail project (video is free to watch, the article is paywalled).
Via The Post in Wellington: (PayWalled) After an eight-month battle, Wellington’s Kinetic bus drivers will finally have their pay increased to $30 an hour from December 10.
Another day, another beacon installation completed, with Morningside Station now proudly boasting two beacons.
The station features a beacon at each entrance, with one installed at the New North Road & Wolseley Street underpass entrance and the other installed at the intersection of New North Road & Morningside Drive.
Things are escalating quickly at Te Waihorotiu Station as crews install 3 sets of double escalators.
The video shows the work involved from installation of framing, fit-out of steps, electrical system, balustrades, and glazing, followed by testing and commissioning.
Sunday, November 26 was the busiest Sunday on the network in Auckland Transport History.
144,067 trips were recorded on public transport services across Auckland, Passenger numbers were up by 38% compared to an average Sunday. This is an impressive feat considering the Eastern Line is still out of action and Sunday frequencies leave much to be desired for passengers.
Sticking with patronage, Nelson’s Bus patronage for October has increased by 6,721 on the previous month.
Saturday and Sunday services continue to grow, increasing by over 500 journeys since the launch of the eBus service with the Motueka and Wakefield routes seeing increases of 45% and 56% respectively.
Finally for Tuesday via RNZ: More people are using public transport in Canterbury, but there are not enough buses to keep up with growing demand.
The regional council last week voted to order five new electric buses so it could increase the frequency of a popular Christchurch route, Buses will run every 10 minutes on Route 7, between Queenspark and Halswell, when the new buses arrive in 6-12 months.
Snapper have released a required update to their app which has rendered previous versions of the app unavailable.
Aucklanders are set for increased public transport fares as Auckland Transport’s board have approved an average 6.5% rise from February.
In transport news I didn’t think I would be covering when I started this blog: Austrian cable car company Doppelmayr has launched its case for adding aerial cable cars to New Zealand’s urban transport mix.
NZ Transit Buzz reached out to Auckland Transport to inquire about the arrival schedule for Auckland's next batch of EMUs, Auckland One Rail confirmed the first train is due for delivery on May 13, 2024.
The order consists of 23 3-car EMUs with 13 to be stationed at the new Pukekohe stabling yard, these trains will mirror the previous batch in design which featured lighter-coloured seats and modified floor coverings.
Sticking with trains, they are back on track along the Stillwater–Ngākawau Line after repairs at the Buller Gorge allowed trains to return at limited speeds. (Thanks to Cory [@AitkesAndPains on Twitter (X)] for the tip-off)
The line had been closed after a large landslide in the early hours of October 16, Following the slip Geoff Mackley put his drone up and captured some amazing up-close footage of the stuck train as well as a photo from inside the tunnel.
Withdraw central Government support from Let's Get Wellington Moving.
Stop central Government work on Auckland Light Rail.
Begin work on a new GPS reflecting new roads of national significance and new PT priorities.
Updated artworks have been painted around Newmarket Station with service buildings in the Newmarket Triangle and near the Remuera Road overbridge getting a fresh lick of paint.
The artworks were painted by Pascal Atiga-Bridger and Rangi Matthews and funded by the Beautification Trust.
KiwiRail have opened a new $30 million wheel shop at the Hutt Workshops in Wellington.
The new workshop features increased automation and improved workflows, which has already boosted wheelset refurbishment capacity, from an average of 30 to 40 per week now up to 75 wheelsets per week.
Via Amy Williams at RNZ: The team behind Auckland Light Rail is still waiting to hear what comes next after a stop-work notice was issued for the multi-billion-dollar project.
It's not just train stations that have been getting beacons but Te Ara ki Uta ki Tai (the Glen Innes to Tamaki Drive shared path) have also received a beacon. This one was spotted by Sam van der Weerden.
Auckland Mayor Wayne Brown is proposing that Aucklanders pay no more than $50 a week on public transport, including bus, rail, and inner harbour ferry services.
In Brown’s press release he also mentioned that from next year, people will be able to tap onto a bus, train, or ferry using Open Loop ticketing (using payWave, Apple, Google Pay, contactless debit and credit cards in addition to their current HOP card) to travel on public transport.
The last few sections of the roof on the Beresford Square entrance to Karanga-a-Hape station have been installed.
The roof is 33m long and 15m wide, and 96m of stainless-steel gutter have been installed along the perimeter with 16 expansion joints.
113 suspended bus services are returning to Wellington’s network over the next two months, as driver recruitment almost fully restores Metlink's bus timetables.
59 weekday services will be reinstated from December 18, before 54 weekend services resume on January 28, routes can be found here and below.
Glenbrook Vintage Railway's Counties Energy Christmas Lights - Trains at Night is set for a 2023 return to the tracks.
Trains will be running between December 8-10 and 15-23 with a sensory night on December 14, trains run between 6-11pm.
For more visit: https://www.gvr.org.nz/trips-events/xmas-lights