Enquiries made by Jennie Hayman, one of Raglan’s two new regional councillors, have revealed that the new contract for the route 23 bus services will be announced, ‘in a few days’. Jenny was told that Waikato Regional Council staff have taken the concerns raised at the February community meeting in Raglan about, ‘timetabling, capacity and journey safety’, into account when they evaluated and decided on the tender. The new contract will begin in April 2017.
Jenny said, “Importantly, this (the tender outcome) will need to be outlined to the new Community Board, so that it can provide feedback on whether any further enhancements are required. Of course, any further changes will need to be funded, which will require further consultation, and working with WDC and NZTA. I realise that this may not quite meet with expectations about consultation prior to the tendering process, but it is where the matter currently stands. The inaugural Raglan Community Board meeting is scheduled for Tuesday 8 November, with the (Tuesday 6th) December meeting being likely the first opportunity available for discussion.”
Jenny has supplied this update to Raglan ward councillor, Lisa Thomson who has provided it to Raglan Community Board members.
Raglan Bus Champion, John Lawson, who first raised this issue said, “In view of the delay till next week (it was originally planned to make an announcement in August), the advance in the implementation date to April (18 July had earlier been announced) and lack of consultation since February, I hope the new community board will seek to get buses on their November agenda. Otherwise it seems not only the communities involved, but also their elected representatives (Board, WRC and WDC) will have little say in the new contract.”