Gold Card holders can load their details onto a Bee Card for free travel on Waikato buses and trains. Photo: Michael Jeans
Bus patronage on the Te Kūiti service to and from Hamilton remained on a par with the previous year as Waikato Regional Council worked to grow awareness and usage of the route.
The Te Kuiti Connector arrives in Hamilton.
The service is not part of the council’s continuous regional programme, but plans are underway to promote it more widely across the Ōtorohanga and Waitomo districts to encourage increased uptake.
The biggest hurdle is the service has only one trip a day during the working week. It leaves the i-Site in Te Kūiti at 6.40am, arrives in Hamilton at 8.25am and then returns at 5.15pm with a final stop in Te Kuiti at 6.47pm.
For Te Kūiti, the regional council says maintaining stable patronage between represented a solid platform for future growth.
A targeted promotional pack is being developed to raise awareness of the service across Ōtorohanga and Waitomo districts, with the aim of increasing usage and strengthening the long‑term viability of the route.
Sandra Sesto-Dekic greets the Te Kuiti Connector to Hamilton.
The daily Taumarunui service – a jointly funded initiative with Te Whatu Ora Waikato which also picks up passengers at Te Kūiti Hospital – recorded a 40 per cent increase.
Its primary purpose is to get passengers to and from Waikato Hospital to Taumarunui and Te Kūiti for outpatient appointments.
Regional councillor Liz Stolwyk said she was thrilled with the Waipā and King Country figures.
“The bus figures confirm the value of regional connector services – the Te Kūiti Connector is doing exactly what it was designed to do – linking communities, supporting access to jobs and services, and providing a dependable alternative.
“The King Country figures are stable and the regional council is doing some great work with Ōtorohanga and Waitomo district councils,” she said.
The Te Kuiti Connector enroute.
“The Taumarunui service, in partnership with Waikato Hospital, is also holding its own.
“The data certainly confirms that public transport is becoming a trusted and practical travel choice across the region and I don’t see this as a short-term spike.
“The numbers show a sustained shift in travel behaviour which is fantastic. When reliable and well-connected services are provided, people will use them,” she said.
Sandra Sesto‑Dekic, Team Leader Customer Focus at Waikato Regional Council said the latest figures showed a mixed but encouraging picture for the other regional bus services.
Both the Cambridge and Te Awamutu services continued to grow patronage through the year. Cambridge’s growth was particularly noticeable during school terms.
Patronage on the Tokoroa service declined, but passenger numbers were up in Waikato from Tamahere, Mātangi and Tauwhare.
Waikato Hospital – buses from King Country, including Taumarunui, stop there.
