Funding for more than 170 new buses for NSW was announced in the state budget.

Lake Macquarie MP Greg Piper was cautiously optimistic about the prospect of some of those new buses being rolled out in Lake Macquarie.

“While I've welcomed the NSW Government's announcement that it will build 170 new buses, no one's yet sure if we'll see any of them in Lake Macquarie,” Mr Piper said.

“About 130 of those 170 will replace aging stock. What is good news, though, is that we'll get some extra bus services in the region.”

Parliamentary Secretary for the Hunter, Scot MacDonald, said the boost to buses would improve weekly services to customers in the region.

More than 100 additional weekly services will be added to several routes in the Hunter, including.-

Premier Gladys Berejiklian said Lake Macquarie passengers would notice improvements on the buses.

“I am excited to confirm this massive budget boost will not only replace 134 of our ageing bus fleet, it will add 42 additional buses and deliver 3300 more services a week across NSW,” Ms Berejiklian said. 

Mr MacDonald said residents would enjoy more frequent and flexible services as part of the state government’s $1.5 billion bus budget.

Meanwhile, the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) has begun a statewide review of rural and regional bus services.

IPART is investigating how fares should best be set for the services provided, how these fares relate to those paid for similar services in metropolitan areas, and how services might be improved to better meet customers’ needs.

Public submissions to the IPART closed last week.

People were asked to comment on what changes they think would be needed to make catching a bus a more viable alternative to private cars.

“These options may include changes to fares or to the way bus services are provided, for example by more flexible departure times, pick-up and drop-off points,” IPART chairman Dr Peter Boxall said.