Weekly Review No.75
This week, AT announces WX1 double-decker introduction date, KiwiRail shares Drury Station update, and bikes could soon be back on buses in Christchurch.
Welcome to the Weekly Review, welcome to the 75th edition. Did you know we are on multiple social media platforms?
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The possibility of regional passenger rail south of Christchurch stays in the region’s transport plan, but any updated blueprint will remove time frames for laying new track.
Park-and-ride was introduced to get more people using public transport and is now being considered for charges in the Greater Wellington Regional Council’s 10-year regional public transport plan draft.
StraitNZ Bluebridge says it is buying a new ship as part of its ongoing investment in Cook Strait services, The company says it will take ownership of the Stena Livia ferry from European shipping company Stena Line.
Hastings city centre is undergoing an upgrade aligned with KiwiRail’s safety improvements to the rail corridor. To improve safety, KiwiRail is installing fencing and pedestrian gates along the railway line.
City Rail Link crews have recently installed a kauri carving within the aluminium rods installed inside the Wellesley Street entrance to Te Waihorotiu Station. CRL also shared a time-lapse video of the Kauri carving being installed.
A significant investment into Greater Christchurch’s public transport which went “missing” last year has been found: in road projects.
Auckland pianist Jon Christie was stopped from playing a public piano at Britomart Train Station, Auckland Transport has since apologised, stating anyone is allowed to play the public piano.
Otago's blueprint for public transport remains "quite progressive" despite central government driving in the other direction, a regional councillor says.
Waikato bus passengers can expect to pay higher fares - potentially double - as the Government pushes for public transport users to cover more of the cost of services.
Feilding is in line for better bus services around the town and into Palmerston North, but could have to wait until July 2026 to ride the improvements.
The return of a popular train service is frustrating an Invercargill resident who believes the city has been "left out".
Via Josh Rogerson’s Substack: From April 2025, PT in the Massey, Westgate, and Upper Harbour communities will change for the better. Here is a rundown of everything that’s proposed and confirmed to be happening on or after the first of April.
On Saturday, Titan Contracting Group completed track inspections at Auckland Transport's Wiri EMU depot. The tracks being inspected were part of the recently opened stabling yard extension.
The makeover of a busy Palmerston North street, which included marking four bus stops in traffic lanes, has caused a stir in the city.
Metlink is seeking a supplier to provide cleaning and minor maintenance services for the 3,000 bus stops across the region.
Millions of dollars of bus and transit lane fines issued by Auckland Transport are going unpaid. In the three years to the end of 2024, just 68% of the 28,953 fines were paid in part or in full.
Has anything changed at Dunedin's bus hub since the stabbing of a teenager in May? Laine Priestley finds the fear has gone, but work is still needed to address a culture of youth violence.
Shaun Baker of Multimodal Adventures shared photos of some of the upgraded bus stops on Great North Road, which are now complete as work begins on other sections of the road.
As noted by Zachary Wong in the Scoot Foundation discord, tracking towards Auckland Transport’s 7-day fare cap is now available on the MyAT section of AT’s website.
Just 17 percent of Wairarapa's trains were on time for most of February, despite a big track upgrade, with staff shortages being blamed.
The first look at the new WX1 fleet in Auckland Transport’s Tangaroa livery has been spotted in an ad for new West Auckland bus drivers, It is unclear if there are further elements of the livery beyond the new standard livery.
Via Josh Rogerson’s Substack: They have proposed an alternative bus network for Titirangi.
Spotted by @urbanistfromwhk on X/Twitter, Plans to grade separate Glen Innes, Te Mahia and Takaanini have been revealed in an Auckland Council Agenda document.
A ban on using bike racks on buses has been called "absurd", even Kafka-esque, but it could soon come to an end, officials say. Yesterday, the NZTA said daytime use of the bike racks could be reinstated next month.
From 1 July 2025, bus fares for services across Taranaki (subject to full Council sign-off next month) are set to increase by 25%. e.g. a Citylink trip with a Bee Card goes from $2 to $2.50
Otago Regional Council is asking people to share their views on public transport priorities for the next ten years during consultation on the Draft Otago Regional Public Transport Plan.
Metlink has compiled an FAQ page to answer commonly asked questions about the recent rail replacement services and delays on the Wairarapa Line.
Winston Peters announced he will provide more detail on the plans for the Cook Strait Ferries programme next week.
From the 27th of April, double-decker electric buses will start running on the WX1, the 120 will become the 12 & route 902 will begin service in Greenhithe.
Also, the 132 will cease on the 24th of April. Changes to the 377 & 64 will also occur on the 27th April. The 377 will be straightened through Rosehill, and a full fare will apply for the 64 instead of the previous 1-cent fare.
Passenger information displays at stations across the Auckland rail network have been updated to show Waitematā instead of Britomart following the official renaming of the station in March 2023.
A staffing crisis at Transdev means Wairarapa’s train service will remain on “knife-edge for a few months”, the operator told Wairarapa leaders on Tuesday.
Auckland Transport advised that several Western rail bus stops are being relocated from 12 April to 'improve your journey times'. Stops impacted are Fruitvale Road, Avondale and Newmarket*.
KiwiRail shared photos of the work underway at Drury Railway Station. Earthworks, ground improvement, and piling works have been underway for about a month and are expected to continue through mid-April.
City Rail Link shared images of the recently installed aluminium soffit panels around the underside of Karanga-a-Hape station entrance roof & crews have installed a basalt slab around the bottom section of the entrance building.
Instead of upping the cost of bus fares to make public transport less reliant on public funding, Environment Canterbury (ECan) wants to try “more aggressive” advertising campaigns.
Oyster Capital’s Spedding Rd industrial site at Whenuapai remains on track for completion in July. Part of the site will be home to Tranzurban’s Westgate Depot.
There were delays on all Wellington train lines after a fault cancelled all trains on Thursday morning.
Via Josh Rogerson’s Substack: As I started to look into the Titirangi improvements, I went onto wonder what other suburbs with established routes could do with improvements. While scrolling around the map, I came to the Grey Lynn area, more specifically, the Westmere and Richmond Road areas.
Auckland Transport has published the full list of changes to 13, 120, 132 and WX1 from 27 April. From 27 April. Tranzurban will run the WX1 11T/W and the 12. Tranzurban will also introduce electric buses on the WX1, 11T, 11W, and 12.
KiwiRail has apologised for a "power supply failure" that suspended train services across the capital Thursday morning.
“On Monday afternoon, I’ll be announcing the outcome of the KiwiRail and the Cook Strait’s ferries and where we’re going to so we’re making progress,” Rail Minister Winston Peters told Waatea News.
The ban on Canterbury buses using bus bike racks could soon be at an end - at least during the daytime. NZTA is currently seeking feedback from the bus sector on the draft exemption notice.