Introducing Public Transport Futures

We're already seeing improvements in bus services thanks to the first stage of PT Futures.

Take, for example, the Route 3 corridor between the airport and Sumner, or the Orbiter ring route – now enjoying ten-minute frequencies. It's as simple as turning up and hopping on, and it's no surprise that more and more people are enjoying these convenient, frequent buses. Route 8 (Airport – Lyttelton) and Route 27 (Northwood – Huntsbury) improvements are also now complete.

Selwyn and Waimakariri Express services have also been introduced to ensure a fast and direct trip to and from the city for residents that commute across Greater Christchurch for work. Park and Ride facilities have been introduced in Rangiora, Kaiapoi, and Rolleston. These support the direct bus services providing peak hour commuters with parking for residents who wish to carpool.

Improvements are being implemented gradually, across the public transport network. In 2025, upgrades are on the way for the Route 7 Halswell – Queenspark service and for Route 1 (Rangiora to Cashmere) and Route 5 (Rolleston to New Brighton) the following year.

These are the first outcomes of the PT Futures Foundations Programme – they are the building blocks for our future public transport network.

Infrastructure upgrades

As well as providing more buses, more often, several other improvements are transforming our public transport system under the Foundations Programme.

The public transport futures programme will aim to improve the quality and comfort of bus shelters, including real-time information screen, wayfinding and better cover.

Priority lanes and signalised intersection improvements are also being introduced to give buses the edge, beating traffic jams and ensuring more reliable travel times.  

Rolling out on the five core routes in the central city and around urban hubs, these measures will tweak the road network as we ramp up frequencies, making public transport a competitive choice against private cars.

Read more:

• Bus priority plans and bus stop enhancements(external link) 
• NZTA Waka Kotahi roading improvements(external link) under the PT Futures Programme

Turn Up and Go

With more buses more often on our core routes, bus use is becoming a breeze.

Turn Up and Go services offer a hassle-free experience. Operating from Monday to Friday between 7am-7pm, buses arrive every 10 minutes during these hours, ensuring an average wait time of just five minutes, while outside of these times, services run every 15 minutes.

As passenger volume grows on our Turn Up and Go core routes, we'll be inching closer to our vision of Mass Rapid Transit services replacing buses on some of these core routes.

Turn Up and Go network, with a bus every 10 minutes; Route 8 every 15 minutes

Read more about the Turn Up and Go service plans(external link)

What is Mass Rapid Transit?(external link)

By 2027, with increased frequencies in place on core routes, the Greater Christchurch Partnership will focus on improvements across the rest of the network.

That means better connections for the secondary routes that provide wider suburban and residential coverage, and improved weekend schedules.

These will be implemented as soon as possible following the improvements to the core network.

Targeted improvements that respond to demands on the public transport network, including route changes and increased bus frequency, will also be included here.

Read more about the rest of the network service plans(external link)