Coronavirus: Auckland's public transport patronage cut by 96 per cent

Monday, 30 March 2020

Public Transport patronage has evaporated to only 4 per cent of pre-lockdown levels

The empty buses and trains already tell the story, but new figures show that for every 100 public transport trips previously taken in Auckland, only three or four are now happening.

The biggest patronage slump on the first day of the Coronavirus lockdown last Thursday, was on ferry services excluding Devonport and Waiheke Island, where a total of only 88 trips were taken, compared with 9,500 a year earlier.

Busy scenes at Auckland train stations are a thing of the past, with patronage down 96 per cent.

Public transport across the country is now running fare-free for essential trips only, and in Auckland is running to a Sunday timetable.

Auckland Transport figures show use of public transport slumped 97 per cent on the previous year, as the lockdown began.

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Across Auckland on the first day of Level 4 restrictions, only 12,770 trips were taken on public transport services, compared with 386,511 a year ago.

Last Thursday, 9,644 trips were taken on buses, the most popular mode of public transport, compared with nearly 300,000 on the same day a year ago.

Trains, which serve major essential services such as Middlemore and Auckland Hospitals, were down 96 per cent to 3,038 from 82,060.

Auckland's public transport data, supports other figures showing a dramatic fall in traffic on urban motorways.

NZTA data showed the sharpest daily fall compared with a week earlier came in Christchurch, where highway flows were down almost 81 per cent.

Wellington flows were down 78 per cent, and in Auckland traffic on the motorways was 76 per cent lighter, Hamilton was down 74 per cent and Dunedin 77 per cent.

Auckland public transport services even at weekend frequency, run as often as every 15 minutes.

Auckland Transport said it would review this week how services were working, but said it would ensure capacity remained adequate with 'social distancing' requiring a two-metre gap between passengers.