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Bikes Are Back On Canterbury Buses
A bike ban on buses in the Greater Christchurch area will be fully lifted from Monday, May 12.
Environment Canterbury (ECan) chairperson Craig Pauling said council staff have been working with operators and Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency to resolve the issue since the ban was imposed in November.
It means commuters on all Metro buses in Christchurch and surrounding towns including Rangiora, Kaiapoi, Woodend, Pegasus, Rolleston and Lincoln, can ride on the bus with their bikes on the front mounted cycle racks.
The ban had followed a safety notice from NZTA, after the agency found the way some front mounted bike racks were fitted could partially obscure headlights.
The ban was relaxed last month to allow bikes on the front of buses during daytime hours.
Operators have installed additional lights on the buses to ensure they provide the necessary visibility.
‘‘We are so pleased to be able to offer this service fully to our community again,’’ Mr Pauling said.
He said operators and council staff had spent several days and nights testing lights to come up with a solution.
‘‘It has been no small feat.’’
ECan said it has been working to make public transport more accessible, as demand continues to grow.
Last week (April 29) it announced it had added five new electric buses to its number 7 (Queenspark to Halswell) route to increase bus frequency to every 10 minutes during the day.
It followed service increases to the Orbiter and number 3 (Airport to Sumner) routes.
The council also has plans to add buses to the number 1 (Rangiora to Cashmere) and number 5 (Rolleston to New Brighton) routes, as funding allows.
Pets on buses is also being considered, and rail remains on the agenda as part of the new Canterbury Public Transport Plan, which ECan is due to adopt later this month.
LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air.
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