Important changes from 4 September − Port to Port (8) and Northwood to Huntsbury (27)

Published 22/08/2023

Metro is pleased to announce, the launch of two new enhanced bus services, Route 8 – Port to Port/Airport to Lyttelton and Route 27 – Northwood to Huntsbury, which will operate from 4 September 2023 and replace the current 17 and 28 routes.

These changes were approved by Council in May 2022 following consultation with the public, including regular passengers of the existing routes – a process that began in 2021.

Do you use Route 17 or Route 28?

The new 8 and 27 routes will more frequent buses and simpler schedules, and will cover all the communities that routes 17 and 28 currently service.

This includes a general weekday frequency of every 15 minutes for Route 8, the new Port to Port service from the Airport to Lyttelton, and a general weekday frequency of every 20 minutes for Route 27, the new Northwood to Huntsbury service.

The current 17 and 28 routes will continue operating up until 3 September 2023 after which they will be replaced by the new services.

For more information about these changes, see the full press release from Environment Canterbury.

Timetables and maps

Follow these links to see full details of each new route, including timetables and maps:

Leading up to the launch, additional Metro staff will be stationed at the Bus Interchange to support customers with the transition.

Other changes

In addition to the enhanced new routes, seven new electric buses will be introduced post-launch, which will be used for these new services and the wider Metro network.

We initially proposed removing the Christchurch Airport Terminal stop from Route 125 (Redwood to Westlake), with the introduction of the new Port to Port route. However, we amended this in response to community feedback, and Route 125 will continue to service the Christchurch Airport Terminal, in addition to the new Port to Port service.