A complete restriction of the use of front-mounted bike racks on all public transport buses throughout Canterbury is being implemented from 8:45pm on Friday 8 November, until further notice. While most school buses do not have front-mounted bike racks, we know that some staff and students may use them for their journeys on our general Metro buses.

The restriction has been issued by bus operators across New Zealand following a safety notice from NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA). NZTA determined that the way some bus models are fitted with bike racks can partially obscure headlights, particularly at night. It sent an alert to all public transport authorities across the country, asking operators to check their buses to see which are affected and to resolve any issues accordingly.   

After further evaluation and consideration of the safety notice, bus operators have unanimously agreed to now implement a complete ban until these safety concerns can be addressed due to the compliance and safety risk. This affects Metro buses—its services are delivered by operators contracted by Canterbury Regional Council (Environment Canterbury). This decision follows the initial night-time restriction which was put in place on 2 November.