A outpouring of frustration from Wellington commuters about bus punctuality will see timetabling revised, which is hoped to address the 'ghost bus' issue.

Bureaucrats spent seven years stuffing up Wellington's bus system and devising a timetable impossible to meet.

Now, after an outpouring of frustration from Wellington commuters about punctuality, timetables will be revised in an effort to tackle 'ghost buses' that disappear from the schedule.

Greater Wellington Regional Councillor Daran Ponter has revealed that planners of Wellington's new routes failed to factor in the capital's winding streets or the extra time double-deckers took to load.

SUPPLIED Ponter said unreliable Real Time Information (RTI) had caused huge frustration and anger for commuters and despite tweaks, was still “far from ideal”.

It had been a "stressful" five weeks for commuters and there were still a number of issues to be addressed such as bus capacity, timetables and hubs where the regional council had "let the side down", he said.

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Ponter, deputy chairman of the council's sustainable transport committee, acknowledged unreliable Real Time Information (RTI) had caused huge frustration and anger for commuters.

ROBERT KITCHIN/STUFF Greater Wellington Regional Councillor Darren Ponter said planners of Wellington's new routes failed to factor in the capital's winding streets or the extra time double-deckers take to load.

Poorly-performing RTI had significantly affected confidence in the council-owned public transport network, Metlink, he said.

Despite many technical tweaks, operator training and re-wiring of some buses, it was still "far from ideal" and councillors had asked for further work to improve reliability.

"There is nothing worse than seeing a bus on the RTI and then have it disappear from the screen".

The timetables on several routes did not align with the reality of threading a bus through Wellington's streets - particularly on the No 1 and 7 routes, he said.

"Metlink is working closely with bus operators to revise timetables and these will be public soon ... and it is working on specific issues related to some routes – such as the number 17 and 17e."

The double-decker dwell times - the amount of time a bus is at a bus stop - was also affecting timetables.

"The bus operator is working on encouraging commuters to anticipate their stops, one stop prior to disembarking, especially on the Golden Mile. If commuters are able to move down stairs one stop before getting off, then the dwell times would reduce considerably," Ponter said.

Alongside the bus problems was the long-running stoush between Tranzurban and the bus drivers' union, Tramways, which boils down to whether the two could agree on bargaining for a collective employment agreement.

But there were also allegations of Tranzurban forcing excessive work hours, and having to ship in drivers from out of town to cover a shortfall when Tranzurban begun in central Wellington in mid-July.

Ponter said operators had now amended their rosters to remove longer shifts, and both the union and the operator have agreed on a date to commence negotiations.

Discussions to create a collective agreement were expected to get underway on Thursday.

Out-of-town company, environmental and transport consultancy, MR Cagney, designed the initial concept for Wellington's new public transport network.

Its consultants did an on-site review of the city during 2011 and 2012, which was adopted by the regional council. It then went out for public consultation in 2012-2014 - shaping the current system.

Capacity

- Regional councillors have asked for up to four more additional buses per hour on routes (2, 3, 22, 36) serving Karori, Northland, Kelburn, Newtown, Mt Cooks, Vogeltown, Mornington and Haitaitai in peak periods.

Metlink was also working with operators to reduce the number of cancelled services on the routes.

- More early morning and evening services will be introduced by the end of the year, along with off-peak No 18e services via the hospital and universities.

- As a temporary measure, in the mornings the 30x and 31x services were now stopping at the Hataitai village and Bus Tunnel stops to pick up passengers.