Trial of Coast Rd bus service mooted

Liz Abbott and Rudie Verhoef, of Seacliff, with the map they presented to the Waikouaiti Coast Community Board showing the route they would like for the Dunedin-Palmerston Otago Regional Council-subsidised bus service. Photo by Bill Campbell.

The couple recommended a six-month trial involving all three weekday return services between Palmerston and Dunedin travelling via Coast Rd, at the public forum of the Waikouaiti Coast Community Board meeting this week.

The Dunedin to Palmerston bus service is run as a subsidised service by the Otago Regional Council (ORC). The council refused an earlier request from Ms Abbott and Mr Verhoef for a trial bus service on Coast Rd.

The community board would consider making a submission on the Coast Rd bus service in the ORC's annual plan process, board chairman Gerard Collings said after the meeting.

ORC spokeswoman Janet Favel gave several reasons for not running a trial service along Coast Rd.-

• The road was very winding and in poor condition, with uneven surfaces and narrow corners.

• Travelling along Coast Rd would add an extra 17 minutes to each trip.

• Running costs would rise, as a heavier bus would be required.

• Road conditions would cause passengers to be travel-sick.

• There would be an increased risk of accidents and increased maintenance costs.

However, Ms Abbott and Mr Verhoef told the board Coast Rd and its railway crossings were fully maintained and had been resealed where necessary in the past 12 months. The full-sized school bus and full-sized tourist buses used the route.

The school bus operated by Citibus on Coast Rd took only five minutes longer than the bus which travelled via SH1. An Oamaru-Dunedin bus service operated via Coast Rd three days a week and the Hoppit bus operated a door-to-door pick-up service along Coast Rd, Ms Abbott said after the meeting.

Warrington and Seacliff were in Dunedin City and it made more sense for the bus service to serve those communities rather than travelling down SH1, which had no settlements between Hawksbury and Evansdale, Mr Verhoef said.

A six-month trial with a timetabled service was being sought, Mr Verhoef said. The previous four-day trial in 1999 was too short, he said.