More Aucklanders are getting back on the bus as rising fuel prices, parking costs and cost-of-living pressures push commuters towards public transport.
Fresh figures from Auckland Transport show bus patronage has returned to pre-pandemic levels, with around 7.5 million trips taken in March alone.
The agency says students and weekend travellers are driving much of the growth, with bus use up 6% compared to the same time last year.
"Particularly buses and it's students actually that are using it more and more now," Auckland Transport interim chief executive Stacey van der Putten said.
"We've seen a 35% increase year on year of use of that tertiary concession."
University of Auckland urban planning programme director Tim Welch said the increase reflected the growing cost of getting around by car.
"This is not just the cost of fuel but it's the cost of time in the car and cost of parking and all these other things that add up to public transport really attractive," he said.
Cost of driving pushing people onto buses
For many Aucklanders, public transport is increasingly becoming the cheaper option.
Students who spoke to 1News said catching the bus was often more affordable than paying for parking and fuel.
"I don't like paying for parking so I definitely catch the bus every single day," one student said.
Another said the convenience of the network was a major drawcard.
"There's always a bus available in the right place ... it's an okay price and it's easy to work. I think it's great."
Families are also feeling the squeeze.
One mother travelling with her newborn said public transport helped reduce transport costs, although she would use it more often if services extended closer to her neighbourhood.
Gold Card holders continue to take advantage of free off-peak travel, with older Aucklanders remaining a significant part of the network's user base.
Weekend bus use seeing some of the strongest growth
Auckland Transport said one of the biggest increases was being seen on weekends as more people return to the city centre for shopping, events and social activities.
Welch said lighter traffic and reliable services made buses particularly attractive on Saturdays and Sundays.
"The traffic is down on the weekends so buses run faster," he said.
"Auckland has a pretty good weekend bus schedule as well so it's really convenient for a lot of people."
The increase in passenger numbers is also strengthening calls for more dedicated bus lanes across Auckland.
Welch said reliable journey times would become increasingly important as demand continued to grow.
"Anytime a bus sits in traffic it's naturally going to be slower."
Van der Putten agreed there was still work to do.
"We have gaps that we need to improve on so reassessing things and seeing what we need to do," she said.
"Do I think there's going to be future demand? Yes I do absolutely. The thing is public transport makes that city more efficient."
Half a million Aucklanders may be missing out
Despite the growth in public transport use, Auckland Transport says many passengers could still be paying more than they need to.
Van der Putten said the agency estimates around 500,000 Aucklanders are not taking advantage of concessions available to them.
"We estimate about half a million people do not take advantage of the concessions available to them," she said.
The discounts are available to a range of groups, including tertiary students, children, Community Services Card holders and Gold Card users.
Auckland Transport has encouraged passengers to check whether they qualify for reduced fares.
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