Public transport in Invercargill

Public transport in Invercargill, New Zealand is by bus.

Passenger Transport provides services under contract to the Invercargill City Council.

Invercargill offered several zero-fare bus services in the first decade of the century.

The Freebie was a zero-fare loop service in the inner city, The Purple Circle was a free suburban bus circuit, and all other suburban bus services operated zero-fare between 9:00 am and 2:30 pm daily. The Mayor of Invercargill, Tim Shadbolt told a conference of New Zealand's Disabled Persons Assembly in October 2002 that Invercargill had an innovative approach to public transport, and that he hoped in future that all buses in Invercargill would be free and accessible.

However, central government requirements (NZ Transport Agency) for regional authorities to aim for a 50% fare recovery from public transport led to Invercargill's zero-fare services being discontinued, and new bus routes and timetables operated by BusSmart were introduced in December 2012. Senior citizens are still provided free off-peak travel via the government's SuperGold Travel Scheme, and children up to Year 8 at school also travel for free in the off-peak period. BusSmart's new routes are Waikiwi Link, Windsor Comet, Heidelberg Star and Kew Connection.

Invercargill has two taxi companies:

The Airport is only 3 km from the centre of the city and transport is mainly by taxi and shuttle van.

The Invercargill City Council specifies, tenders, subsidises and contracts with bus operators for provision of public transport in Invercargill. Passenger Transport Ltd currently holds this contract.

From the opening of the Bluff Branch in 1867 until the cancellation of the final service in 1967, passenger trains operated between Invercargill and Bluff for commuters and school children. In 1950, seven trains ran each way on the average weekday, with eight on Fridays, five on Saturdays, and one on Sundays. By 1967, only one train ran each way on weekdays for the benefit of school children, and due to being unviable, it was cancelled.

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