Controversial Christchurch bus stop unlikely to move
A controversial Christchurch bus stop is likely to stay put, despite residents calling for it to be moved.
Residents last year asked the Christchurch City Council to move the city’s third busiest bus stop on Buckleys Rd in Linwood to the other side of Eastgate Mall.
They were tired of dealing with bus patrons urinating, defecating and littering on their properties. They also believed it was unsafe for people to cross the four-laned road to get to the stop.
However, a council report investigating public transport hub options in the area said moving the bus stop would be expensive, divert buses away from core routes and create safety issues for pedestrians and cars using the mall’s car park.
The report favours upgrading the existing passenger facilities at the bus stop to provide larger and better weather- proofed structures. A signalised crossing would also be put in place, providing people a safer passage across the road.
This option would cost $1.1 million, including $600,000 for shelters and $500,000 for the crossing.
The Linwood Central Heathcote Community Board has asked the council to pursue this option so it can be included for funding in the council’s 2018 long term plan. The council would discuss the issue on Thursday.
The report said upgrading the existing bus stop represented better value for money and lower ongoing operational costs, but Buckleys Rd was perceived as an unpleasant and unsafe location, particularly in the dark.
A passenger waiting lounge in the mall could be required at a later stage, but there was insufficient demand to justify it now, the report said.
Creating a lounge in a ground floor unit inside the mall would cost $550,000 initially and up to $300,000 a year to operate.
Moving the bus stop to the rear entrance of the mall and creating a lounge would cost $2.1m. Almost half the cost would be consumed by improving two intersections to make them suitable for buses.
Buses would have to use the mall’s internal roads, which were likely to be unsuitable for the vehicles and might not be able to sustain a growth in bus numbers, the report said.
A fourth option, using the former Linwood Library site on Cranley St to build shelters, a lounge and bus stops would cost $4.1m. There were concerns about safety and security when the mall was closed. The land was leased to Eastgate Mall until 2022.
Neale Tomlinson, who lives over the fence from the existing bus stop, said the behaviour of bus patrons had improved lately, but he still wanted the stop moved.
‘‘I would prefer it on the other side of the mall. That would be better overall, but since the behaviour has improved I’m not so stressed about it. We had genuine concerns.’’