Subscribe to RSSI’ve Discovered The School Bus
Now if all buses were like this, imagine the crowds…
I have only recently discovered the 006 - and so love it, I call it the School Bus. It was actually going to Unitec so did have a school bus feel anyway.
It’s one of those ex- squeezed down Urban Express - type buses that tear down suburban streets you never knew existed but suddenly get you cross town in no time at all.
I needed to get from Mt Eden shops to St Lukes in a relative hurry and contemplated the frustration of a bus from Mt Eden to the Mt Eden train station, wait there for a Western train, get one to Morningside and then walk to the St Lukes shopping centre.
Then along came along Little Toot and whisked me to St Lukes before I had time to put my Go-Rider card away.
Here’s the coolest bit and why I called it the School Bus. The driver was a character who acted as if he spent all day driving that route and probably did. He knew every bump and turn in the road, so drove accordingly and did moves only a Top Gear professional would have the confidence to do.
It took me a while to work out the culture because I was obviously not a regular. I couldn’t understand why people were able to get out at what didn’t look like bus stops. The more I peered out the window, the more I realised they actually were definitely NOT bus stops. Were they mates of the driver or so regular, he knew where they lived?
So I took a gamble and pressed the buzzer and the guy immediately stopped. So I get it.
You call the shots, or should I say the stops. How fantastic.
So here is one of those rare Auckland buses that goes crosstown which means you don’t have to go via a main arterial and then get another bus the opposite way.
And it’s a bus that kind of acts like a taxi without the Auckland taxi charges.
I much prefer trains to buses any day but I love 006. I want more like her.
Pressing the stop lever in a train would never get me closer to where I need to go as the 006 did. It would only earn me a ride in a paddy wagon for pulling the emergency stop.
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Auckland, NEW ZEALAND
13 Comments
More crosstown buses please! 006 is operated by Metrolink not Urban Express though.
@Pickle Agree. I realise its Metrolink but its like one of those little ones that used to Urban express in its early days.
Those buses were actually built for Dunedin, then ended up in the Hutt Valley before being sent up north to run the 006 and 014 routes.
Several sections of the route is actually “Hail and Ride” as there are no defined bus stops. Not so common in Auckland but has some use in Wellington - 50 Broadmeadows Shopper is an egsample of this.
I don’t know what you mean by the article? Are you explaining that when you press the buzzer, the bus stops where you want it too. I thought this is normal, as I did this all the time when I used to take PT last year.
I actually caught the 006 for the first time on Saturday and was impressed too. I live in Balmoral, and to get to Newmarket I normally catch a b-line Dom Rd service, followed by a Western line train… takes about 16 minutes if you time it right- about the same as a car off peak when you factor the lengthy interactions with parking buildings at such destinations. But being Saturday night I didn’t even want to think about trying to match very poor timetables, so I consulted my iPhone which returned a 006 leaving in 10 mins- my driver was great too as he effortlessly glided around the bends at pace.
On a side note… I have been finding the built in iPhone maps app indispensable for navigating on public transport… it really makes it so easy- 1 tap on the home screen, type destination, and tap go… map with relevant times and routes displayed immediately.
This sort of stuff will really revolutionise the accessibility of PT.
I used to take the 006 frequently to work from Newmarket to Mt Eden. Those drivers are rostered on what appears to be a full 8 hour day for a week on that route. We would have the same driver every morning, and depending on which bus I hopped on, every afternoon. The only irk I had with them was that the kids from Auckland Normal Intermediate would fill the bus to crush load at Newmarket and shout and scream and sing all the way to Mt Eden!
Fun stories. @Sam yes the iPhone is a saviour.
My student flat all knew our Urban Express driver by first name, and coming home he would always stop at our Parnell house although no bus stop there & we didn’t even need to push buzzer. Great service
The cross-town buses are great. The 011 service is really handy also but only runs between 9 and 4 so is no good for commuters (the 010 operates more frequently but a different route).
if only these services were more frequent. This would mean people would be able to connect to other services easily. All services would gain as new passengers would be gained for both the cross-town routes and the CBD - suburb routes.
Off course you need integrated ticketing, and change points that were obviously identified somehow.
I usually walk home to Mt Eden when I am in Newmarket, but I recently caught the 006 instead. I rang the bell what I thought was a reasonable distance from my street (not knowing where the next stop was) and was so confused when it stopped immediately since I didn’t see a sign anywhere. Good to know why, and will definitely make the most of this next time!
I took 006 for the first time on Tuesday and was totally amazed. It is very convenient and the route was like a mini-central auckland tour. The bus driver was very lovely too!!
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