Express bus bid

Express bus bid

Mt Victoria residents would love to have the airport bus make a stop in the suburb, as Jane O’Loughlin reports.

Have you ever wished you could hop on the fast airport bus to get to Wellington airport?

Getting the airport bus to stop in Mt Victoria is one of the submissions being made by the Mt Victoria Residents’ Association on the Wellington Regional Transport Plan.

The Airport Express service travels between the Wellington Airport and Wellington Railway Station seven days a week, passing through Mt Victoria on the way to the bus tunnel, but does not stop.

The closest bus stops are on Courtenay Place or in Hataitai on the other side of the bus tunnel.  This leaves Mt Victoria residents having to walk to Courtenay Place, or take the number 2 bus through the tunnel in order to transfer to the airport bus in Hataitai. 

It is also possible to continue on  the number 2 bus, get off in Miramar, and walk about 7-10 minutes to the airport. 

In a Facebook discussion, many residents were enthusiastic about the idea of the bus stopping to pick them up or drop them off in Mt Victoria, and said they would use the service if it did.

Andrew Pickering said he would support a change 100%.  “I work at the airport and have to walk down to Courtenay place with my bags or wait for bus 2 and walk from Hobart St in Miramar.”

Pauline Van Veen commented: “I get Airport bus from Hataitai but have to get Number 2 from Pirie Street first and again on return. A Mt Victoria stop would be really appreciated.”

Some commentators were more sceptical, saying that the point of an express bus was not to make too many stops.

However others said that the bus needed to stop just before the bus tunnel anyway, to wait for on-coming buses, so an additional stop would make little difference.

Several people said they had been able to persuade bus drivers to drop them off in Mt Victoria in the past but these days drivers were monitored and not allowed to make unscheduled stops.

The Residents’ Association is asking the regional council to have the bus make one stop in Mt Victoria, when it presents on this and other transport issues at a hearing on 6 May.

In a submission, the Association said: “This would considerably facilitate travel to and from the airport which is often accompanied by luggage and when we lug it we want the shortest route.  The airport bus stops in every other suburb it passes through and would not be overly delayed by one stop in Mt Victoria.”

Asked for comment, Metlink responded that it was not currently planning to add a Mount Victoria stop to the Airport Express bus route.  The schedule was designed to balance the express status of the service with having stops at key locations to maximise patronage.

“It is currently Metlink’s position that adding a Mount Victoria stop to the route would reduce service frequency and misalign timetables, to the detriment of passengers travelling to and from the airport,” said Metlink Group Manager Samantha Gain.

However she said that Metlink reviewed its services periodically and welcomed feedback on its position through the planning rounds.