Free bus rides as student lure

Palmerston North will offer free bus transport anywhere in the city for tertiary students and staff next year.

The deal was part of the city and Massey University's plan to make Palmerston North the best student city, said deputy vice-chancellor Ian Warrington.

"Free travel - that's a big incentive," he said.

"The estimates are that a round trip to Massey, from pretty much anywhere in town, will cost you $7 each time when you go by car. That's paying for petrol, for tyres, for registration, insurance and parking."

Each staff member and student at Massey next year will be given a plastic swipe-card as a bus ticket.

"We're needing 13,000 of these things. It's a big project," Professor Warrington said.

Bus routes have been changed to move through the city's main concentrations of student flats and buses will run between 7.15am and 9.15pm.

Connecting services from other parts of town have been rejigged to minimise waiting times.

Massey's bus stops will also shift from being on the ring road round the outside of the campus to stopping right in the heart of the university, behind the main concourse.

The free deal is part of Massey's transport strategy and the university will pay $300,000 next year towards the service. At the same time, the university is increasing the cost of carparking on campus.

Professor Warrington said this was partly to encourage staff and students to use the buses and partly to get maximum Government and local government subsidies for the free bus service.

The university's "gravel pit" carpark at the back of the campus, which now turns into a dustbowl in summer and muddy potholes in winter, will be sealed, fenced, lit and security-gated as part of the project. From February, casual parking there will cost $2 a day and about $1 a day for long-term parking.

Charges will also go up for parks inside the university's ring road, costing more than the gravel pit, with all increases staged across two years.

"I want to be clear that the carpark charges won't pay for the bus service," Professor Warrington said.

"Those charges go to the cost of providing carparks and doing up the gravel pit.

"We have to charge for parking, otherwise the free bus service won't get all the subsidies it could."

The free bus plan will be tested for two years.

Universal College of Learning staff and students have had a free bus service for two years.

Professor Warrington said the service was well used.

- NZPA