Kāpiti College students switching buses at Paraparaumu Railway Station. Photo/ Grace Odlum
Kāpiti College students switching buses at Paraparaumu Railway Station. Photo/ Grace Odlum
Long travel times have become the norm for many Kāpiti College students who live in Paekākāriki.
One parent said it has been taking her two children up to two hours to get home from school compared to the 40 minutes it used to take them.
The students get one of three buses from the college - the first departs at 3.20pm - which takes them to Paraparaumu Railway Station before hopping on a bus to take them to Paekākāriki Railway Station.
The replacement of trains with buses was due to speed restrictions KiwiRail had placed on the Kāpiti Line after severe rain caused slips which have needed slope stabilisation work.
A member of the Metlink customer resolution team told the parent that “bus replacement services often face delays caused by traffic-related issues which can affect the timeliness of the service”.
“Other factors, such as passenger loading/offloading and driver swaps due to health and safety concerns around long driving hours can also have an impact on the buses.”
The Metlink representative also said there is a shortage of bus drivers which affects the number of buses they can put on the road.
“This has resulted in long wait times and crowded buses at peak time which we understand is not ideal for our customers.”
This situation needs attending to immediately so our children can get home safely and in a reasonable time
The plan would continue, they said, until the speed restrictions placed on the line had been reduced or lifted and this couldn’t happen until the hillside has been strengthened and checked to ensure it was structurally sound.
The Kāpiti College bus next to the Metlink bus. Photo/ Grace Odlum
The parent told Metlink the situation had become increasingly problematic.
Her son has an after-school job in Paekākāriki which he couldn’t make on time, so had to take the family car to school, and her daughter was getting stressed by the long wait times.
“My children report that there are about 150 Kāpiti College students waiting for the train replacement.
“When the bus arrives, there are not enough seats for everyone, so many are forced to wait for the next scheduled bus.
“I’ve heard that it has taken some students up to three hours to get home to Whitby.”
She said, “This situation needs attending to immediately so our children can get home safely and in a reasonable time.”
In her weekly Kāpiti News column, Greater Wellington Regional Council’s Kāpiti representative Penny Gaylor said KiwiRail had completed the majority of slope stabilisation upgrades to the area of the track.
She said they are now in the final stage of installing and conducting testing to calibrate the monitoring system that detects disruptions on the tracks and sync the system with train control.
“KiwiRail has stated that the monitoring system should be ready for use by the end of February.”
In an email to parents of Kāpiti College students, principal Tony Kane said while the school contracts the southern bus, Metlink services were beyond their control.
He said they are making representations for Metlink buses to go directly from the school to Paekākāriki while the issues with services continue.
He also directed affected parents to make their views known to Metlink.
