KEY POINTS:
A bid to improve public transport for people leaving North Shore's bars in the early hours of the morning has prompted a month-long survey outside some of the area's busiest drinking establishments.
Starting tomorrow patrons entering or leaving pubs and bars at Takapuna and Albany will be asked to give a few minutes of their time to participate in a survey about their drinking habits.
They will be asked questions relating to where they have been drinking, where they got their alcohol from, where they are going next and how they plan on getting there.
The information will then be used to help shape North Shore's alcohol- related policies.
North Shore City Council Liquor Licensing Inspector Peter Richardson said one of the aims of the survey was to find out how people got home at the end of each night and whether there was any scope for better public transport.
That stemmed from incidents about a year ago in which members of the public were complaining about drunk people loitering in the streets after closing time.
"Although there was no evidence, we suspected part of the problem was that when the pubs started emptying out at 1 o'clock there was no public transport for these people to get home so they were hanging around waiting for taxis."
The was also a concern that some people were drinking and driving, rather than paying for a ride home.
If the survey supports the belief that there is a need for more buses or taxis, the council will look at making submissions for more public transport on the North Shore to key areas in the early hours of the morning.
The survey will run outside bars every Thursday to Saturday, between 9pm and 11pm, for the next month.
