Wellington public transport going electric

More than 100 electric buses by 2023 and all core bus services electric by 2030 are among Greater Wellington Regional Council plans for its public transport fleet.

The council is also “pursuing additional electrification opportunities across both rail and ferry” while accelerating decarbonisation of the region’s bus fleet, its chair Roger Blakeley says.

Public consultation on the council’s draft Regional Public Transport Plan 2021 (RPTP) is open until March 19, the council saying it wants to hear the community’s view on improving the region’s public transport network to help drive decarbonisation of vehicles, improve safety and customer experience, and increase public transport usage across the region.

The proposed RPTP outlines Greater Wellington’s ambitions to reduce public transport emissions by more than 60% by 2030, drive a 40% increase in ‘mode shift’ to public transport by 2030, while maintaining a customer satisfaction target of at least 92%.

It’s about creating a framework that prioritises customer satisfaction, accessibility, and health and safety, says Blakeley, so we can see more people shifting from private vehicles to public transport as well as connecting to public transport through more active modes of travel.

The RPTP guides the design and delivery of public transport services, information and infrastructure across the Wellington region and is developed in collaboration with the community.

“To support our communities to make sustainable and active choices, we’re advocating for a high quality, high capacity and high frequency core network,” Blakeley says.

“This will leverage the full benefits of various regional programmes such as Let’s Get Wellington Moving, the Wellington Regional Growth Framework and the Regional Rail Strategic Direction.”

He says customer experience improvements in the pipeline include improved real time information and simpler, integrated fares across rail, bus and ferry that will be delivered by the National Ticketing programme.

“We really encourage the community to jump online and have their say, your views are really important to shaping the future of public transport in our region.”

Wellington’s move to e-buses previously featured in EVs and Beyond.

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