Ghost bus: why is Motu Move taking so long to arrive in Canterbury?
Last year, people in Canterbury were expecting a subtle, but useful, change to how they use public transport: the advent of the Motu Move system, which would allow Cantabrians to tag on to the bus with their debit card. Going region by region, the plan was for Motu Move to replace existing ticketing and public transport cards, concluding in Otago at the end of 2026. With one system in the whole country, the same card could be used for taking the train in Auckland, the ferry in Wellington and the bus in Christchurch. Though only one card would be required (and contactless debit cards could be used to tag on too) the pricing of public transport would still go to each individual council.
But although Motu Move was supposed to be operating in Canterbury by mid-2025, with an earlier rollout in Timaru and Temuka, Cantabrians are still scanning their Metro cards. The only sign of it, so far, is Christchurch's route 29 bus – supposed to be an initial pilot before the broader system was implemented.
Running since December, a NZTA spokesperson said that 27,000 trips on the 29 route have been paid for with debit and credit cards – 35% of adult fares on that route. 'The pilot has proven that the base contactless payments components of the system work and that more customers than expected have been keen to adopt the new payment options,' NZTA said.
However, the broader system is well behind schedule. A re-confirmed plan for delivery in Canterbury, then the rest of the regions, is expected in August, NZTA said. The National Ticketing System governance board is also conducting a review to identify problems with implementation; a report will be delivered at the end of July.
Deon Swiggs, the Environment Canterbury deputy chair and holder of the transport portfolio, says that the delay has been 'frustrating'. 'NZTA have to communicate with us,' he said, noting the communication has improved in recent weeks. 'We need to know what's happening so we can communicate it to our residents.'
The initial plan was to roll out Motu Move in Timaru and Temuka early this year. Timaru has on-demand shuttle buses, and there's a bus route from the South Canterbury centre to Temuka. Both towns have on-demand transport services. 'It's a smaller and more confined system [than Greater Christchurch] – a good test to iron out the kinks,' Swiggs said.
One reason that Canterbury had been selected as the first area to deploy the Motu Move upgrade was that its current ticketing system with a Metro transport card is up for renewal. 'We were operating on the assumption that Motu Move would take over Metro in Christchurch,' Swiggs said. Until the council receives an updated timeline, it's not clear how much it should invest to keep Metro running in the meantime.
The benefits of the Motu Move system are clear. Elliot Weir, an Otago Regional councillor, uses their Bee Card frequently. Outside of Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch, the Bee cards are operated by all other regional councils with public transport services, meaning Weir was able to tag onto the bus as normal when they visited Hamilton recently. This could make it even easier for visitors to a region to use public transport, rather than needing to borrow a car or use rideshare services. 'Queenstown has a bus that goes to the airport – it's always packed,' Weir pointed out.
The Motu Move system will also mean users can tag on with digital credit cards, and top their card up on their phone. 'I've been known to forget my wallet – it's super handy if you can still tag on with your phone or watch,' Weir said.
Swiggs has appreciated using his Google Wallet to take the 29 bus. As Motu Move rolls out, most councils will stop accepting cash fares. 'It's more efficient to tag on than for drivers to manually count cash,' Swiggs said. 'If it costs an extra five or 10 seconds at every stop, and there are 50 stops on a route, that adds up to nearly 10 minutes – we know that reliability is the first thing users want from a public transport system.' Environment Canterbury plans to work with the City Mission and Housing First Christchurch to get their clients up to speed on the digital system; low income people are often those who depend on cash.
When implemented, the ticketing system will also gather better data about which routes are being used – ideally helping transport planners to ensure their services respond to where people want to go.
Motu Move does represent a major technical challenge. But other countries have conquered the 'pay with your debit card' challenge years ago: Singapore, Sydney and the Netherlands all have this option available. 'It's really simple to just have one card,' Swiggs says. 'It's been en route for a long time.' Debit card tag-on is already available in Auckland (which will eventually also be integrated into Motu Move), and on Wellington's airport bus. But Cantabrians will have to wait months even just to find out when Motu Move might arrive for them.
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