Canberra's peak hour Xpressos are unlikely to be revived as part of Canberra's new bus network, because of the drain the commuter buses place on the network.
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Xpressos have been controversially dumped in favour of more Rapid buses as part of the incoming network, which goes live in January.
There will be 10 Rapid routes on the new network - including light rail - with services at least every 15 minutes from 7am to 7pm Monday to Friday.
However patrons have slammed the removal of the peak hour Xpresso buses, saying their commutes will nearly double in time.
Transport Canberra declined to release the raw data that underpinned the design of the new network, but gave The Canberra Times an insight into some of its more controversial aspects.
The Xpressos were introduced in the early 2000s to provide fast, direct trips for peak commuters.
There are about 73 morning Xpresso trips and 70 afternoon trips on 19 different routes.
Transport Canberra commercial policy manager Patrick Fischer-Reid said Xpresso services averaged about 20 passengers while rapids averaged about 40 at peak times.
"Our four existing rapid routes will carry around 7.4 million customers in 2017-18, or about 40 per cent of our total boardings. Today’s 19 Xpresso routes carry less than 4 per cent of our customers," Mr Fischer-Reid said.
"The average number of customers on each Xpresso bus trip is about 20, when a standard size bus carries more than 60 customers at a time.
"As a result, the average number of people on each bus is 24 in the morning peak and 18 in the afternoon peak.
"On Transport Canberra’s existing Rapid services, the average number of people boarding each bus in the morning peak is 42 and in the afternoon peak is 40."
Mr Fischer-Reid said redeploying those buses into the Rapid network was a "better use" of resources, while providing a similar service.
"That same [Xpressso] bus deployed on a Rapid route between Tuggeranong and the city can carry people from Tuggeranong to Greenway, Wanniassa, Woden and the city, with additional passengers boarding and stopping along the way," he said.
"This bus may carry upwards of 100 people over the course of an hour, serving far more passenger trips with the same amount of resources."
He said retaining the Xpressos would "significantly reduce" Transport Canberra's capacity to provide more frequent services across the whole network.
"Rapid routes can carry more people per trip than direct Xpresso routes because the same seats can be used by several passengers along the way," Mr Fischer-Reid said
"For example, a Rapid bus could start at Lanyon, drop off passengers at Greenway and pick up more, then drop off passengers at Woden and pick up more and then carry passengers to the city."
However the communities that rely on the Xpressos believe the Rapids pale in comparison.
"The Xpressos and the Rapids serve different purposes," Woden Valley Community Council president Fiona Carrick said.
"Hopefully they'll make some modifications to the current proposal. You shouldn't have to change once you're on a Rapid, it should run from Tuggeranong to Belconnen or Tuggeranong to Gungahlin."
Tuggeranong Community Council president Glenys Patulny said the Rapid and Xpresso buses were like "apples and oranges".
She said the problems with the network were exacerbated for Tuggeranong residents because of the extra distance.
"We are a whole extra bus route length away from everyone else. The removal [of the Xpressos] adds an extra half an hour for each trip," Ms Patulny said.
Belconnen Community Council chair Glen Hyde said Belconnen residents were "defensive" of their Xpresso services, as the buses took commuters directly to employment hubs on the southside.
"We're not seeing that connectivity in the new network," Mr Hyde said.
Community consultation on the new network closes this weekend.
Have your say until August 12: yoursay.act.gov.au/rapid-bus-network
