Pukuatua St bus stop on the move

Rotorua's main inner city bus stop will be moved from Pukuatua St to Arawa St by July next year.

Rotorua's Pukuatua St bus stop is on the move after a number of changes to the city's bus routes were announced this afternoon.

CityRide buses will travel on a new inner city route next year, creating a loop around the central city and bringing more downtown locations closer to a bus stop.

The new loop will take passengers along a Fenton, Arawa, Amohia, Rotorua Central Mall and Victoria St circuit from July 2015.

The Rotorua Lakes Council will establish a new inner city bus stop on Arawa St, on a section of road adjacent to the i-SITE and library, with the existing Pukuatua St bus stop being removed.

The changes were approved at a Bay of Plenty Regional Council Passenger Transport sub-committee meeting on Tuesday as part of a re-tender process for the Rotorua's CityRide contract.

Changes to some other routes were also approved.

Sub-committee chairman Lyall Thurston said the changes were developed from extensive discussions held with Rotorua Lakes Council about how the regional council could support Rotorua's Inner City Revitalisation Strategy, and from information gathered in a recent review of the Rotorua network.

"The changes mean more of the central city will be covered by the bus network and it puts both regional buses and local buses within easy walking distance of each other for those using a combination of services," Mr Thurston said.

Passengers will also see bike racks appearing on buses and will be able to take the bus on public holidays. Buses will continue to be fully accessible to people with limited mobility.

"The inclusion of bike racks on buses means people will be able to mix their modes of travel, perhaps taking the bus into work in the morning and cycling home later," he said.
"As well as the associated health benefits from cycling, we hope it will reduce the transport footprint in the city."

Rotorua Lakes district councillor Glenys Searancke expressed her appreciation to the regional council for its work and co-operation in making the changes.

"The new routes that have been agreed upon, in particular having the buses coming into Rotorua Central, will be a huge benefit for the Rotorua community and visitors to Rotorua," she said.

Pukeroa Oruawhata and Rotorua Central Mall representative Peter Faulkner said they were pleased to be able to participate in the revision of the schedules.

"The changes will certainly contribute towards the inner city revitalisation," he said.

The changes will come into effect by mid-2015 when the new contract for operating Rotorua's bus service is expected to begin.
The regional council's re-tender process for operating the service will begin on December 16.

More information about the CityRide network is available at www.baybus.co.nz.