The council keeps talking about "consultation" but business owners say "only one voice is being heard".
In November, 2022, the Oamaru Mail reported the council removed a bus stop without consultation, prompting the local business owners in the area to meet with the council to outline their concerns.
The council reversed the bus stop parking changes in December, 2022, after meeting business owners.
But last month when road repairs were being done on Itchen St, the bus stops were changed again without any consultation with business owners in the area or bus companies, such as Ritchies and Inspiring Journeys.
The council road changes have divided the bus stop sector into two areas that are separated by a no parking area and removed the mobility park.
The Flying Penguin business owner Lorraine Adams said the changes were done "in a sneaky way".
The council were doing repairs on Itchen St and used that time period to re-mark the bus stops "without any consultation," she said.
Ms Adams said they have lost "valuable parking space including the mobility park, which is unacceptable".
"No bus company was consulted. We’ve already had bus drivers wanting to boycott stopping in Oamaru in the past, because of these changes.
"Last Sunday was a complete shambles.
"The council never consulted with anyone. There is one business owner who wanted the changes, and that’s more or less the problem," she said.
Star and Garter Restaurant owner Katie Robertson is also furious.
"It’s absolute bulls ....
"They’ve taken away our only disabled parking.
"We have a lot of older people who come to the restaurant and now that parking is not there for them.
"It’s changed because of one shop owner."
Ms Adams and Ms Robertson have reached out to council with their concerns.
Along with inconvenience for customers and potential financial loss to businesses and bus drivers, Ms Robertson said it has created hazards for people in the area.
"It’s so dangerous, you’ve got buses moving everywhere, unable to park.
"It’s wasted space. It’s a joke, really. It’s not using the space correctly.
Ms Robertson knows of other businesses that are also unhappy about the changes and at first gave the council the benefit of the doubt.
"We didn’t know about it. We initially thought it was accidental but there was nothing accidental about it."
Oamaru Steam and Rail Society general manager Harry Andrew said "it’s bad management and planning, there’s some hidden agenda ... it’s the same person who wanted the bus stops removed".
"Cutting buses out of there, is affecting other people, they’ve got to think about others around them."
He said with managing the railway and for businesses, the more "cars" they have in the area the better.
"It’s a laughable thing, how silly it looks. A bus stop and no parking, why didn’t they put the two bus stops together."
Mr Andrew said the removal of the mobility park had created accessibility issues for many and had also affected him personally.
"I liked the paraplegic parking as it lets people get to the toilet. I’m disabled. I have calipers on my legs — it’s not easy for some to get around".
"It’s mainly for the toilets [the mobility park] but it also allows people to get out to grab an ice-cream at the Itchen St Dairy or a coffee," he said.
Mr Andrew said "the council don’t talk to anyone around here" and there was "no consultation".
Waitaki District Council did not respond by deadline to questions regarding the bus-stop changes.
