Street’s son arrives
SSuper City tudents from Auckland’s Macleans College have spoken out about dangerous overcrowding on buses that principal Steve Hargreaves describes as like a scene from a Japanese train station.
“We need more buses, we have a roll of more than 2000, it is just not enough,” says Angela Zhang, the editor of the school’s online publication The Collegian.
The students’ story echoes concerns by schools, parents and students across the city after moves by Auckland Transport to axe dedicated school buses and make pupils catch regular public transport.
A story Zhang published this week by student Justin Hu raised issues about dangerous overcrowding, including “suffocating and claustrophobic” conditions from the reduction of five after-school buses to two at the Bucklands Beach school.
“[The bus situation] is utterly inconvenient and requires hundreds of students every day to battle their way on to public transport,” student Fiona Yu said in the article.
Hargreaves described the scene of children running to catch a public bus after school as crazy, saying it reminded him of people being crammed on to trains in Japan.
His deputy, Madeline Thompson, said the school was no longer getting any response or traction from AT since a helpful liaison person who came and visited the school had left their job.
An AT spokesman confirmed two routes were removed, saying public buses were seen as offering a suitable option for students travelling to the destinations these school buses previously served.
“We investigated the possibility of operating an additional bus on route 427, however were unable to implement this due to funding constraints,” he said.
Auckland Council and the Government plan to invest $28 billion on transport in Auckland over the next 10 years, a fair chunk of which will go to AT to improve bus services.
Auckland Transport has defended a number of other issues raised through the Herald following complaints from the loss of school buses and other changes from the rollout of a new bus network across the city.
Among the complaints are the loss of school buses to the cluster of public and private schools in Epsom, loss of school buses affecting students at Sacred Heart and Glendowie colleges, and the axing of a bus service used by the elderly to attend the Green Lane Clinical Centre.
Kohimarama mother Penny Tucker has described AT’s planning and behaviour as “inconceivably inept . . . a finely honed pinnacle of abject incompetence”.
Diocesan School for Girls is organising a survey of other colleges in Epsom, which principal Heather McRae believes will show fewer students are catching the bus or have significantly disrupted times.
Several people have come forward to complain about the situation at the two Glendowie colleges, with Gillian Brown saying her young teenage daughter and friends felt unsafe when they were left stranded after football practice at Glen Innes.
An AT spokesman said buses did travel via a transport hub at Glen Innes for people to change services but there was always at least one security guard on duty from 2pm to the last trains.
The area of the Glen Innes station had 21 CCTV cameras and is well lit, he said.
Glen Innes resident Ailsa MartinBuss said the cancellation of the 007 direct bus service to the Green Lane Clinical Centre meant the elderly now had to catch two buses and endure the difficulty of getting on and off buses.
The 86-year-old and her husband, both of whom use walking frames, forked out $40 each way to catch a taxi to the clinical centre last week because they did not want to change buses. She was due to sign off from The Hits this morning to head on maternity leave but instead, Toni Street made an urgent dash to New Plymouth yesterday to welcome her new baby boy. The baby boy, who was carried by a surrogate mother, was due to arrive later this month but instead surprised everyone with his early arrival. Street shared the news on social media, thanking her close friend and surrogate Sophie Braggins for bringing her son into the world. Street made the announcement on her Instagram with a picture of her new son’s feet in little blue slippers. “Little man has arrived early! @sophie_ braggins was an absolute trooper . . . we adore our new son. Will hopefully have a name by the morning,” Street said. Street’s husband Matt France also took to Instagram to share his excitement over the birth of his new son. “This little man will be so loved! Surrounded by amazing women! So proud of his mum and so grateful for this gift from our amazing friend,” he said. The new arrival is Street and France’s third child. In June, Braggins said she was feeling good about bearing a child for her best friend.