Selwyn Star service begins

Environment Canterbury will start the new Selwyn Star services as scheduled from November 1, adding to existing services between Selwyn, the south-west and Christchurch City.

The three routes making up the Selwyn Star will be run by Leopard Coachlines. Improvements include more frequent weekend services on the 81 Lincoln route, a new half-hourly City to Rolleston service (88) and an hourly Selwyn shuttle service (820) linking Burnham, Rolleston, Springston and Lincoln. The Selwyn shuttle will run every two hours at weekends.

The original plan had been to roll-out a fleet of brand new yellow Selwyn Star buses, built locally by Designline, however their factory in Rolleston was badly damaged by the Canterbury earthquake. It will now be some time before the thirty-two new buses ordered by Leopard for the Selwyn Star services are ready.

Leopard Coachlines have worked hard to find temporary replacements and will ensure that the new services begin as planned and run smoothly until delivery of their new buses. The temporary replacements will be clearly identifiable as Selwyn Star buses, but their colour will be white.

To celebrate the importance of the new services to local people, local schools have been invited to leave their own ‘mark’ on the buses in the form of a rainbow made up of the children’s handprints. Their artwork will be featured on all of the temporary buses.

Environment Canterbury commissioner, Rex Williams said that Leopard’s quick response is yet another example of the resilience shown by Canterbury people and businesses in the aftermath of the quake.

“It’s thanks to Leopard and their efforts that this new service can go ahead pretty much as planned - a testimony to their ingenuity and willingness to get things done,” said Rex Williams.

“The temporary replacement buses will not all be wheelchair accessible. Senior citizens or people with prams or strollers may also have difficulty with the steps. Services that were set to provide bike racks won’t do so for the time being. We hope that people will be patient until the new buses are ready, probably early in the New Year.”

Mr Williams said that the Selwyn Star service is being introduced to meet public demand for a direct link between Lincoln and Rolleston and it will provide an economic boost for the two key activity centres in the district at a crucial time for businesses.

“We want to encourage people living in the south-west to choose the bus to get to shops and other local services because it is a safe, convenient and cost-effective way to travel.”