Newmarket Business Association
Media release
Tuesday, 8 September 2009

Thank goodness Auckland bus strike averted

"This is great news for the tens of thousands of commuters, not to mention businesses and schools," said Cameron Brewer, chief executive of the Newmarket Business Association in response to news that a bus driver lock-out has been called off.

“For a sprawling city that’s so dependent on buses, such industrial action would have been akin to shutting down some of London’s Underground.

“Newmarket would have been more adversely affected than most simply because we’re such a hub for buses. Thousands of neighbouring secondary school students rely on the buses as do many of our employees.

“Buses are Auckland’s lifeblood. A lot of employees would've run late for work and some wouldn't have made it at all. Given we're in a recession it would have been a very bad look for the country’s commercial capital.

“This would have been potentially negative for Auckland’s reputation because the likes of the LinkBus are so key for tourists getting around the city's central suburbs.

"It would have only added to Auckland's peak time congestion which is under enough pressure due to concurrent projects. Thank goodness the industrial action has been averted," says Mr Brewer.

ENDS

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