Passengers for hire put solo drivers in fast lane

By AMANDA CAMERON

Canny students and impatient motorists are teaming up to outfox traffic officers on the North Shore's busy Onewa Rd.

It's a win-win partnership - the commuters reach work faster without risking a fine and the students make a quick buck.

Hundreds of city-bound vehicles jam Onewa Rd each morning as commuters queue to get on to State Highway 1 and the harbour bridge.

But drivers carrying two or more passengers can cruise down a special transit lane under North Shore City Council rules.

Any drivers caught breaking the rule are hit with a $150 fine by council "transit officers" who use video cameras and voice recordings to police the lane.

In the past few months, two enterprising Northcote College students have each made about $25 helping motorists avoid the morning crawl.

"We mainly do it on rainy days and real busy days," said one of the boys, a 14-year-old.

The students, who usually walk to school, first made money when they offered to help out a visibly impatient driver. They travelled with him down Onewa Rd so he could drive in the transit lane, and the boys made $7 between them.

The second time, they were approached by a woman who was running very late for work.

The boy said he and his mate had helped only three drivers each so far. As far as he knew, no other Northcote College students had made any money from motorists on Onewa Rd.

Council traffic services manager Tom Morton said the council was not aware of the behaviour, which was not illegal but posed a safety risk.

"I would have thought from a personal safety perspective some of the parents might be slightly interested in their children just hopping into cars."

A 25-year-old mortgage broker who regularly drives to work down Onewa Rd said he found the traffic "shocking" but he wouldn't pay anyone so that he could travel in the transit lane. "I don't think it's fair on everyone else."

However, he has considered picking up people waiting at bus stops to avoid the queues.

He said it could take him up to an hour to get to the city from Greenhithe via Onewa Rd.

The award-winning transit lane - the only one of its kind in New Zealand - is reserved for buses, cars with three or more people, motorbikes and bicycles between 6.30am and 9am Mondays to Fridays.

It has operated since 1982 and the council is planning to establish more throughout the North Shore.