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A new bus network for Sydney Buses’ Northern Beaches and Lower North Shore

Category: Transport News and Announcements
Posted Date: 29 May 2009

In August 2008 State Transit Authority invited the community to comment on a proposal to improve bus services by making routes more direct and providing services to meet growing demand.

We appreciate the time the local community took to be involved in the comment process.  We received submissions on a variety of topics, all of which were carefully considered and reviewed.  

The new bus network will introduce changes, which will allow the whole community to access a greater number of bus transport options including:

• A full time 7 days per week direct City service for Cromer residents
• A daytime direct City service for Wheeler Heights residents
• New Route 153 providing three daytime off-peak shopping trips on weekdays between Warringah Mall (stopping inside) and major retirement villages in the Wheeler Heights, Cromer and Narraweena areas
• Additional weekend City services introduced on Route 244 to Chowder Bay via Mosman
• Extension of City service Route 245 from Spit Junction to Balmoral via Mosman
• Better access to Manly during daytime off-peak and weekends between Warringah Mall with an increase in frequency from 15 minutes to approximately 10 minutes
• Changes to Route 136 service provide Forestville residents with additional links to Chatswood, Dee Why and Manly

You told us that you wanted…	Our response
Sydney Buses to introduce new bus services to Elanora Heights and Warriewood	(Routes 182 and L83 commenced 24 November 2008)
No change to Routes 136 and L60	Links with Chatswood are maintained whilst allowing more customers to access bus services. Route L60 will be retained and realigned with Route 136 stopping at selected stops between Dee Why and Wakehurst Parkway, then operating non stop to Roseville Chase, then all stops to Chatswood. Route 136 will no longer run non stop between Roseville Chase and Frenchs Forest and will pick up and set down all stops between Manly and Chatswood.
No change to Route 139 thereby leaving the service in Foam Street, Freshwater
No change to Routes 135, 146 and 152	Route 146 is to be discontinued and replaced with Route 179 from Wheeler Heights to City via Warringah Mall. Route 135 will be extended to follow the southern part of Route 146 from Warringah Mall to Manly via Balgowlah shops / Stockland Mall. Route 152 is to be discontinued and replaced by the extension of Route 178 from Dee Why to Cromer Heights.   In response to concerns raised by elderly and disabled residents in the Wheeler Heights, Cromer and Narraweena areas a new Route 153 weekday daytime off-peak shopping service will be introduced and stop inside Warringah Mall. The existing link to Warringah Mall via Willandra Village is maintained with Route E78 and Route 178 with all City services operating via Pittwater Road outside the entrance to Warringah Mall.
No change to Routes E68 and E71	Whilst Routes E68 and E71 have been retained, morning services will no longer stop between Seaforth and Spit Junction.  Afternoon services from the City remain unchanged.
No change to Route E72	Route E72 will be discontinued. Express City services will be provided along Willandra Road and McIntosh Road on Route E78 via Pittwater Road or Route E69 along Warringah Road via Wakehurst Parkway.  The level of service between Beacon Hill and Seaforth along Warringah Road previously provided by the Routes E72 and E73 will be maintained.
No change to Route E73	Route E73 will be discontinued and all express services from Cromer to Narraweena will be directed via Pittwater Road on Routes E78 and E79.  Customers between Narraweena and Seaforth via Wakehurst Parkway will travel on Route E69 express services.  The level of service previously provided for Routes E72 and E73 will be maintained.
No change to Route 193	Feedback from the community told us that whilst patronage is low there is a need to provide for school students who use this service.  Therefore Route 193 will be withdrawn and School service Route 793 will operate to meet the needs of local students.
No change to Route 228	This service will be retained on its current route.  Route 228 will become a weekday peak service, between 7.00am and 9.30am and 3.00pm and 7.00pm.  A weekday, off-peak Route 229 service will operate between Milsons Point and Spit Junction.
Route 229 retained to service the Beauty Point area
No change to Route 233	Route 233 will be discontinued. Additional trips on Routes 236 and 238 in the early mornings and up to 8.00pm will replace existing Route 233 trips. Route 245 will be extended to Balmoral Monday to Sunday and provide an alternative service to Balmoral from the City.
The proposed redirection of Route 263 withdrawn
The proposal to change stopping patterns withdrawn	There are currently more than 25 different stopping patterns operating across the Northern Region bus network.  The stops that Express and Limited-Stops buses make along the Pittwater/Military Road corridor vary between routes and direction of service.  Whilst feedback from the public did not support changes to stopping patterns the changes are needed to: ·    reduce the complexity of the system, ·    improve the community’s access to services, ·    better manage passenger loadings, ·    help reduce overcrowding during peak times. As part of this bus network review the Express and Limited-Stops services operating along the Pittwater/Military Road corridor were examined in detail.  This enabled State Transit to simplify the stopping patterns into fewer Express and Limited-Stops configurations which are easily communicated to customers in a clear and concise format.

School Special routes have not been altered although some minor time changes have made.  Local schools will be notified of these changes.

We will closely monitor the new network to respond to passenger demand.

A full list of the changes to the bus network for the Northern Beaches and Lower North Shore can be found here.

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