Debate over when Christchurch bus timetables will return to normal

Sunday, 16 January 2022

Environment Canterbury believes the driver shortage, and thus reduced timetables, may continue for several months.

Major Christchurch bus operator Go Bus is confident it can overcome the city’s driver shortage and return to normal timetables from February, but the man in charge of the network isn’t so sure.

Environment Canterbury (ECan), which runs Greater Christchurch’s public transport network, is not as optimistic, predicting reduced timetables may continue for several months.

It believes high demand during February and March and the looming threat of Omicron – and possible increased driver sickness – could see the shortage continue.

Since December, several of Christchurch’s urban bus routes have been running less-frequent Saturday timetables during weekdays, due to a driver shortage.

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Four of the city's five core routes continue to run their less-frequent Saturday timetables during weekdays.

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This has reduced the number of buses running each day by about 8 per cent.

Environment Canterbury unveiled a new look for Christchurch's buses in September 2020.

ECan estimates December patronage dropped by about six per cent, compared to the same month the year before, due to the reduced timetable.

Four of the city's five core routes are running the reduced timetables.

The city’s Orbiter bus used to have a 10-minute frequency between 7am and 7pm, but the reduced timetable saw it run from 10am to 6pm, skipping the morning peak.

Direct services running from Rangiora or Kaiapoi to the city centre (and vice versa) have not been affected by the changes. These services only run during the morning and evening peak times.

The number 1 line, which runs between Rangiora and Cashmere via the city centre, is running its Saturday timetable during the week, meaning its express services no longer run.

Patronage in December 2021 was down 12 per cent compared to December 2020. Officials think about half of that drop is due to the reduced timetables.

The 95 and 97 buses, which run to and from Pegasus and Waikuku, are also running to weekend timetables.

Go Bus, which runs 80 per cent of Christchurch’s buses, introduced 30 new drivers to its training academy in the past two months, chief operating officer Nigel Piper said.

“[This] would normally be way in excess of what we normally require, but these are extraordinary times,” he said.

Piper said from February 1, Go Bus would have enough drivers to see timetables return to normal.

The company intended to hire a further 30 drivers by May, so it would have enough to cover annual leave and reduce dependence on casual staff.

ECan public transport general manager Stewart Gibbon said while he had the intent to restore normal timetables by February, he had a “conservative” view that driver issues would continue.

“One of the things we’ve learnt in the last 18 months is nothing is a given in public transport at the moment,” he said.

Gibbon said he did not want to make any commitments to the community by saying the problem would be solved by February, “because there’s a good chance it won’t be”.

He said February and March were the busiest months of the year, and he expected “quite a bit of pressure” on buses.

“We don't have too many options, if there's not drivers to drive vehicles, we can't just turn on more vehicles,” Gibbon said.

He also feared there could be disruption if the Omicron variant of Covid-19 spread in New Zealand.

Increased infection rates from Omicron would impact on drivers being able to turn up to work, he said.

“I’m not foretelling that as a certainty, but we’re kind of starting to think about that now,' Gibbon said.

Driver shortages were not limited to Christchurch or public transport.

Auckland recently experienced a shortage of bus drivers, while Wellington is struggling to attract rubbish truck drivers.

Gibbon thought split shifts and pay rates were contributing to the Christchurch shortage.

All bus drivers in Christchurch are paid at least $22.75 an hour.

Piper, from Go Bus, said its experienced drivers, who have completed all training and induction, earn $24 an hour.

He said the driver shortage had been caused by the rising availability of other jobs.

Immigration had played a role too, he said, as many immigrant drivers had chosen to return home while no new ones had arrived due to the border closure.