Stress free way to travel around Newcastle: ‘On Demand’ services set for end of year

A new ‘on demand’ transport service is set to be trailled in Newcastle. It will be offered at a flat rate and users will be able to request pick-ups at convenient locations, via the associated app.

Alex Terno of Marsfield and Driver Jay Balasubramanian on the Keoride Bus. Similar buses from a different company will be rolled out on demand in Newcastle. Picture: John Appleyard

• Hunter man forced to pay back $44K to Centrelink
• Man charged after two-punch assault at Cambridge Hotel

Need to get from one end of the city to the other quickly? Well it’s set to become a little bit easier with an ‘On Demand’ transport service soon to be trialled in Newcastle.

At just a flat rate of $3.20, it’s a stress free way to travel around the city and to Newcastle’s inner suburbs, easily done and booked through the Newcastle Transport app.

It’s a little bit like Uber, but cheaper.

The ‘On Demand’ service, run by City of Newcastle in partnership with Keolis Downer, uses smaller vehicles, including two six-passenger cars and an 11 passenger van with wheel-chair access, and will only run where there is demand.

Newcastle on demand map with points of interest around the city.

Instead of waiting to catch a bus, users can request pick-ups at convenient locations, via the app, at times of their choosing and the service will take them to a local transport hub or other point of interest in the city.

The trial run, set to kick off by the end of the year for a period of 12 months, will operate in peak hours between 6.30am to 9am, and 3.30pm to 6pm Monday to Friday.

It will take in the East End, Civic, Market Town and the Newcastle Interchange from places such as Beaumont St in Hamilton, Broadmeadow station, Merewether, The Junction, Bar Beach, Hamilton South and The Hill.

‘On Demand’ users can travel from Merewether or Bar Beach. Picture by Peter Lorimer

Why not take an ‘On Demand’ service to Civic in Newcastle. Picture by Peter Lorimer

Newcastle Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said the service would allow people in Newcastle to explore new ways to get around.

“The trial is just another way Newcastle is forging ahead as a modern and smart city,” the Lord Mayor said.

 “It presents a new and flexible way for commuters to make their journey into the city for work and has the potential to remove cars from the city centre opening up more car spaces in and around the city.

“The trial’s aim is to encourage Novocastrians and visitors to take advantage of public transport options in the City, with the service area designed to support public transport use by including key transport nodes such as Newcastle interchange and Broadmeadow Station.”

Part of the Smart Moves Newcastle Program, the trial supports the City’s long-term planning and ambition for higher levels of public transport patronage and active travel creating a more pedestrian-friendly city centre.