Hawke's Bay Regional Council is scrapping an under-used express bus service between Napier and Hastings so it can boost capacity on other routes where passenger demand has surged.
The early morning and late afternoon express service to be scrapped - running between the two cities via the expressway - has been carrying an average of only five passengers per trip "making it a very costly service to provide" council staff said in a report put to councillors this week.
Meanwhile, the regular service between the two cities is struggling to stick to timetables because of an increase in passenger numbers and the withdrawal of some Ministry of Education services.
Peak-time services on the route were carrying heavy volumes of passengers and running eight-15 minutes late.
"This is hugely frustrating for the drivers and very inconvenient for passengers, with reports of passengers arriving at work/school/EIT late and missing appointments," the report said.