Bus Go Dunedin co-president Alex King also said the more than 30-strong attendance was the largest at any public meeting called by the bus user support group since it was established three years ago.
Mr King was surprised at both the size of the turnout and the strength of community feeling over the issue.
Meeting-goers later unanimously supported a motion calling on the Otago Regional Council to retain its new highway express bus service from Green Island, but also to allow the Brighton bus users to travel on the ''old route'' through Concord and nearby areas to reach South Dunedin and then central Dunedin.
Several people with disabilities said they had been disadvantaged by the bus system changes.
The system changed on July 1 when the new, more direct southern routes - amounting to about 20% of the overall Dunedin bus network - were introduced.
The aim was to attract more people to use the faster ''express'' routes which aimed to move people more quickly to their destinations.
Jack Rutherford (84), a former Maniototo Area School principal, has lived in Green Island for more than three years.
Mr Rutherford attended yesterday's meeting and later said he had been ''very upset'' to lose the previous direct bus link with South Dunedin, where shops and services he used were located.
He has a visual impairment and now uses a taxi to reach South Dunedin.
He hoped important public transport links between Concord and the area's ''CBD'' in Green Island could also be restored.
Mr King said some people had been pessimistic yesterday about their chances of persuading the regional council to rethink any aspect of the bus system.
But he was more optimistic, and appreciated the council did listen to community concerns and could make appropriate adjustments.
Some passengers had benefited from the July 1 southern routes changes, but Bus Go Dunedin was seeking to make some ''tweaking'' changes to meet the needs of some bus users who had lost their previous service.
ORC support services manager Gerard Collings said yesterday the council had continued to listen to community concerns and emphasised ''the door isn't closed''.
Mr Collings had previously said he intended to consider the situation further and to discuss matters with bus operators about next April or midyear.
