User:Mqst north/Northern Sydney

The local bus routes of northern Sydney connect suburban destinations with major transport nodes in the Hills, Upper North Shore and Forest districts of Sydney, Australia. Local routes form one of three tiers in Sydney's bus network, complementing intermediate ("suburban") and strategic ("rapid") routes between major centres.

The local route network ensures that 90% of Sydneysiders are within 400 metres of a bus stop during daylight hours. Transport for New South Wales, the state government agency that manages public transport, divides northern Sydney into three Sydney Metropolitan Bus Service Contract regions:


 * Region 4, the Hills District, operated by Hillsbus
 * Region 12, the Upper North Shore, operated by Transdev
 * Region 14, the Forest District, operated by Forest Coach Lines.

Services in these regions evolved from routes created by small family-operated bus companies following World War I, though most were relegated to the status of railway feeder services after 1932.

Region 4: Hills District
Region 4 is made up of 65 bus routes in Sydney's Hills District, including the major centres of Rouse Hill, Norwest and Castle Hill. The region's fleet consists of around 500 buses.

The region's boundaries were defined by the then Ministry of Transport as part of a major consolidation in 2005 and the operating contract was allocated to the area's then dominant operator, Hillsbus. In recommending the consolidation of regions in 2004, Unsworth had stressed the importance of competitive tendering as well, however the NSW Government did not adopt this approach for Region 4 until 2013. In the event, Hillsbus was the successful bidder, winning a new five-year contract starting in July 2014.

All Region 4 services are classified as "local" under Sydney's Bus Future with the exception of suburban route 525 and rapid routes M52, M41 and M54. Major interchanges are located at Wynyard, Parramatta and Blacktown stations, and Rouse Hill and Castle Hill town centres.

Together, Region 4 routes accounted for more than 21.7 million passenger journeys in the 12 months to October 2017. Over the same period, Hillsbus exceeded its on-time running benchmark of 95% in all but three months.

Region 12: Upper North Shore
Region 12 is made up of 24 bus routes in Sydney's Upper North Shore, including the major centres of Chatswood and Hornsby.

The region's boundaries were defined by the then Ministry of Transport as part of a major consolidation in 2005 and the operating contract was allocated to the area's then dominant operator, Shorelink. It was not until 2012 that the region went to a competitive tender. In the event, Shorelink, by now part of Transdev was the successful bidder, winning a new five-year contract starting in June 2013. Trandev dropped the Shorelink brand the following year.

All Region 12 routes are classified by Sydney's Bus Future as "local". Major interchanges are located at Hornsby, Turramurra and Gordon stations, and Macquarie University.

Together, Region 12 routes accounted for more than 3.3 million passenger journeys in the 12 months to October 2017. Over the same period, Transdev exceeded its on-time running benchmark of 95% in all but one month.

Region 14: Forest District
Region 14 is made up of 18 bus routes in Sydney's Forest District, including its major centre, Frenchs Forest.

The region's boundaries were defined by the then Ministry of Transport as part of a major consolidation in 2005 and the operating contract was allocated to the area's then dominant operator, Forest Coach Lines. It was not until 2012 that the region went to a competitive tender. In the event, Forest was the successful bidder, winning a new five-year contract starting in April 2013.

All Region 14 services are classified as "local" with the exception of suburban route 270. Major interchanges are located at Wynyard, Chatswood and Gordon stations, as well as town centres at Belrose and Frenchs Forest.

Together, Region 14 routes accounted for more than 4.7 million passenger journeys in the 12 months to October 2017. Over the same period, Forest failed to meet its on-time running benchmark of 95% in five of the 12 months.