Hiccups for fledgling bus service

Scott Macarthur wants to expand his business. Photo / Glen Jeffrey.

Auckland's newest transport operator Scott Macarthur told his parents he wanted to be a bus driver when he grew up.

Academic studies turned him into a town planner, but his graduating thesis was on public transport, and he has begun honouring his childhood ambition by starting his own bus line.

Admittedly, he has started small, in the driver's seat of a single 20-seater bus providing hourly weekend-only services between Pt Chevalier and Newmarket.

That is because he still works four days a week in Auckland City's planning department, using his salary to pay off the Mitsubishi bus and his fuel costs until patronage grows to the point he can afford to hire relief drivers.

But Mr Macarthur, 28, hopes to expand to weekday services, to fill what he says is a gap in Auckland's transport network.

The trouble is that, despite enthusiastic support from the Newmarket Business Association, he has been unable to persuade the Auckland Regional Transport Authority to add his timetables to the main sections of its Maxx website.

Although it has listed him among "other bus services", he said it was on an obscure part of the website, which the Herald was unable to find without assistance.

That has left him distributing leaflets in his spare time to homes near the route he began plying six weeks ago via Kingsland, after spending as many months gaining licences for his operation.

"I thought that since I was providing a public service, Arta [the transport authority] would at least help me with my marketing," he said yesterday.

Because of the difficulties getting word out, he was carrying an average eight passengers over 10 return trips on Saturdays and Sundays. The break-even goal was four a trip.

Although his costs were low, and his commitment to public transport meant he was willing to continue the service for now, business needed to pick up to guarantee its long-term survival.

Mr Macarthur said the authority initially refused to register his unsubsidised service, for which he charges an adult fare of $3.20.

That compares with the $4.80 Pt Chevalier residents have to pay when travelling to Newmarket by changing buses in central Auckland.

But without authority support he cannot offer student discounts or free travel to SuperGold cardholders.

He said an authority official refused to register him initially on the basis that there were not enough bus-stops available in Newmarket, and that the business association allegedly did not support public transport.

But after "tweaking" his route, he gained the necessary registration, and was surprised when business association general manager Cameron Brewer contacted him to offer support.

Mr Brewer lives in Pt Chevalier, and found out about the new service through one of Mr Macarthur's leaflets.

"The missing link between Pt Chevalier and Newmarket has been a bugbear of mine for some time, which I have raised with Arta on different occasions," Mr Brewer said.

"Until the end of 1956, Pt Chevalier and Newmarket were of course well serviced by trams. It has only taken 53 years, but the two suburbs are again connected."

Authority communications manager Sharon Hunter said the organisation supported initiatives such as Mr Macarthur's but had to be assured of the success and longevity of a service before spending up to $20,000 on adding it to mainstream timetables.

"We need to be sure before we spend ratepayers' money for timetable changes in constrained economic times."

She said the authority was helping Mr Macarthur with its website link to his timetable, and was happy to keep talking to him if his service proved successful.

Mr Macarthur acknowledged he had an appointment with authority officials next week to discuss his plans further.

For the Pt Chev-Newmarket weekend timetable visit www.mbl.net.nz