Revamped bus system essentially a booby prize from Government
"As any form of rapid transit needs clear conduits - unimpeded flow across many kilometres - it inevitably involves identification of routes years in advance" Environment Canterbury is about to launch a revamp of Christchurch buses. Essentially it is a bus system designed by the Government not the two Councils in Christchurch. Government policy has effectively dictated that public transport is low priority in Christchurch, that a conventional bus system is good enough for New Zealand's third (grade) city and, despite the ever growing congestion, that rapid transit (i.e on exclusive corridors) is not even on the books. In fact bus services to some areas are being removed to comply with Government demands of meeting a farebox recovery of 50%. This over-riding of the city's future needs has only been possible because the huge vacuum in effective leadership in public transport issues that Christchurch has suffered across the last decade. Had we had a "L...