New Burnham bus link may open soon

Press, 19 June 1986, Page 9

New Burnham bus link may open soon

Burnham’s isolation from Christchurch could be reduced in August if the details of a new bus service are approved by the Canterbury United Council. The council’s urban transport committee yesterday approved in principle a new bus service between Christchurch, Burnham and Rolleston. The service would be run by a private operator and include three return trips a day, with an extra evening trip on Fridays. Staff were authorised to negotiate financial arrangements for the service before reporting back to the committee for a final decision. The council’s transport planning manager, Mr Brian Hasell, said the New Zealand Army was interested in improving the bus link between Burnham and Christchurch. The new service would cater for workers who travelled to Burnham from the city, and schoolchildren and shoppers from Burnham. The cost for the first six months would be about $12,000. The Army would bear some, the rest coming from a fare of about $2.40, he said.

Cr John Hanafin was concerned that the service would not attract sufficient patronage. The committee heard that a Railways Board Services coach service between Ashburton and Christchurch called at Bumham. Cycle routes The need for improvements to cycle routes emerged from a traffic study by the council in March. Although 86 per cent of traffic on arterial roads was motor-vehicles, each arterial road carried, on average, 50 per cent more cycles than the average local road, it was reported. The many cyclists using arterial roads emphasised the need to continue providing convenient, safe alternative routes, the report said. The degree of potential conflict between cycles and motor-vehicles was measured. The five arterial roads with the highest degree of potential conflict were Fendalton Road, Wairakei Road, Waltham Road, Carmen Road, and Riccarton Road. The report suggested that these five roads

might be given priority for relief works for cyclists. Motor-vehicles should be separated from cyclists on Fendalton Road by marking cycle lanes or by providing nearby cycle routes such as Matai Street.