News

We have reorganised the R20/21 and R18 services to improve operating times. Here are the key changes:

1. In the morning, students will continue to catch the same bus (now known as R20) at the same time. This service travels to Bethlehem where it transfers TGC students to R18.
2. In the afternoon, students will catch the R18 to Bethlehem, where they will transfer to R20.

This change was due to implemented later this term but, due a communication problem, is already in place. We apologise for any inconvenience this has caused.

Dear families,

We acknowledge that there has been a delay in settling down the bus services coming from Ōmokoroa. At the beginning of each school year we need to go through a process of balancing loads between the four buses that service the peninsula to try and reduce the number of standees. This process has been delayed this year due to difficulties in obtaining the necessary data.

It might be tempting to draw a connection between bus pass orders the the number of required seats on buses. Unfortunately this approach does not work – in 2022 we provided many more passes than there are spaces available. Many students live in more than one household, many students use the bus inconsistently, some students only use the bus once per week. All of these students hold valid bus passes, meaning that the number of passes issued is always higher than the number of actual passengers.

The required data was supplied to EasyBus today and we have been able to make an immediate change as follows. Here it is:

• R22 will commence operations at Prole Road, 5 to 7 minutes later than the current time, and will wait at Prole Road
• R25 will complete the first part of its route along Old Highway and Youngson Road and then will pass R22 to commence picking up students along Omokoroa Road
• R22 will follow along behind R25
• Once full, R25 will complete a u-turn and travel to Otumoetai
• R22 will then commence picking up students in Omokoroa before travelling to Plummers Point.

In the afternoon, students are required to catch the same bus number home in order to avoid over-crowding one bus or the other.

This plan will be monitored over the next week or so and will be adjusted as required. Eventually, bus stops will be assigned to particular routes to maintain balanced loads. Route times will also be adjusted as required.

Update: This change has been effective in balancing the loads between the routes. We anticipate being able to make a timing change to R22 on Wed 22 Feb to improve arrival times at school.

Please continue to send feedback via this website.

The COVID-19 Public Health Response (Protection Framework and Other Matters) Amendment Order 2022 has been published.
 
From 3 February 2022, all students aged eight years and over or are students in Year 4 and above legally must wear a mask on school transport services in the Red and Orange traffic light settings unless they have an exemption.
 
The Government is also now requiring that a face covering must be an actual mask. This means that face coverings such as scarves, bandannas or t-shirts pulled up over the face are no longer allowed. As above, it is recommended that masks be a medical-grade mask.
 
Students in Year 3 and below
 
While we encourage all students to wear masks on school transport, students in Year 3 and below are not required to wear masks.
 
Exemptions from wearing masks
 
Information on mask exemptions can be found on the Unite Against COVID-19 website.