SkyBus is an

airport bus An airport bus, or airport shuttle bus, alternatively simply airport shuttle or shuttle bus is a bus designed for transport of passengers to and from, or within airports. These vehicles will usually be equipped with larger luggage space, and i ...

service operating in Australia in

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

and

Hobart Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...

. In Melbourne, SkyBus carries over 2 million passengers per year and 8.3% of all Melbourne Airport passengers.

History

SkyBus commenced operations on 6 June 1978, running a shuttle service between

Melbourne Airport Melbourne Airport , known locally as Tullamarine Airport, is an international airport serving Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Operating 24/7 service, 24 hours a day with on-site parking, shopping and dining, Melbourne Airport is the List of th ...

and the Melbourne city centre. On 2 August 1982, SkyBus took over the airport bus services run by the now-defunct airlines Ansett and TAA.Skybus
Australian Bus Fleet Lists Looking north bound down the Tullamarine Freeway at Airport West

Looking north bound down the Tullamarine Freeway at Airport West

Until November 2000, the Melbourne city centre terminus was at a coach depot in Franklin Street. It would pick up passengers at the then Spencer Street station and various city hotels before continuing on to the airport. In November 2000, SkyBus relocated to Spencer Street station with services operating express to the airport, cutting the journey time to 20 minutes and allowing more services to be introduced. Connecting minibuses were introduced to continue the hotel transfer/pickup service. In 2002, the

Government of Victoria The Victoria State Government, also referred to as the Victorian Government, is the Executive (government), executive government of the Australian state of Victoria (Australia), Victoria. As a parliamentary system, parliamentary constitutiona ...

opted to contribute $3 million to a $10 million plan to expand and improve SkyBus services, after a feasibility study into a city to

airport rail link An airport rail link is a service providing passenger rail transport between an airport and a nearby city. Direct links operate straight from the airport terminal to the city, while other links require an intermediate use of a people mover or ...

found the service would not be viable. The initiative funded the purchase of new buses, and improvements to the

Tullamarine Freeway The Tullamarine Freeway (commonly referred to as The Tulla), is a major urban freeway in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, linking Melbourne Airport to the Melbourne City Centre. It carries up to 210,000 vehicles per day and is one of Australia ...

, to give SkyBus vehicles priority in traffic. The operation has an audited revenue share arrangement with the Victorian Government. In August 2008, the SkyBus contract was renewed for five years. In 2007 SkyBus' patronage grew by 17% over the previous year, to 1.6 million passengers, with estimated revenue of $24 million. Proposals to improve the bus service involving turning emergency lanes into bus lanes on the freeway and the Bolte Bridge and putting SkyBus on a Myki fare, were challenged by

CityLink CityLink is a network of tollways in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, linking the Tullamarine Freeway, Tullamarine, West Gate Freeway, West Gate and Monash Freeways and incorporating Bolte Bridge, Burnley Tunnel and other ...

operator

Transurban Transurban is an Australian, multinational road operations company and one of the world's largest toll road operators. Transurban, either independently or through financial consortiums, manage and develops urban toll road networks across Austr ...

, because it would limit its toll revenue, and by

, because it would reduce its car parking profits. Both facilities were privatised in the 1990s. In September 2014, SkyBus was purchased by a consortium that included Catalyst Direct Capital Management and OPTrust Private Markets Group. The consortium would later be known as AATS Group (known as

Kinetic Group Kinetic Group (stylised as K''I''NET''I''C; formerly known as AATS Group) is an Australian-based multinational bus company that wholly owns a number of bus operations in Australia and New Zealand, including the SkyBus business, which operates ...

since August 2019). In 2015, SkyBus purchased the

Auckland Airport Auckland Airport is an international airport serving Auckland, the most populous city of New Zealand. It is the largest and busiest airport in the country, with over 18.7 million passengers served in the year ended December 2024. The airpor ...

service in New Zealand from Johnston's Coachlines. In June 2016, SkyBus commenced operating to Frankston with the purchase of the Frankston & Peninsula Airport Shuttle. In February 2017, SkyBus took over the route between Southern Cross station and

Avalon Airport Avalon Airport is a domestic airport, located in Avalon in the City of Greater Geelong in Victoria, Australia. While located outside the Melbourne metropolitan area, it is the second busiest of the four airports serving the state capital i ...

previously run by

Sita Buslines Transit Systems Victoria, formerly Sita Buslines, is a bus and coach operator in Melbourne, Australia. It is a subsidiary of Transit Systems and operates 18 bus routes under contract to Public Transport Victoria. History In 1966, Frank Bono ...

. In July 2017, it began operating the

Geelong Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...

to Avalon Airport service after the previous owners, Murrel Group, lost their accreditation to enter the airport. In November 2017, SkyBus Gold Coast operations commenced in Gold Coast,

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

with the purchase of the Gold Coast Tourist Shuttle (GCTS) business from Surfside Buslines.

Current services

Avalon Airport

Avalon City Express

The Avalon City Express service operates between

and

Southern Cross railway station Southern Cross railway station (until 2005 known as Spencer Street station) is a major railway station in Docklands, Victoria, Docklands, Melbourne. It is on Spencer Street, between Collins Street, Melbourne, Collins and La Trobe Street, La Tr ...

via the Princes Freeway and

West Gate Freeway The West Gate Freeway is a major freeway in Melbourne, the busiest urban freeway and the busiest road in Australia, carrying upwards of 200,000 vehicles per day. It links Geelong (via the Princes Freeway) and Melbourne's western suburbs to ...

, making a stop in Werribee. The service operates to a timetable that is adjusted monthly, with one service connecting to every flight departing and arriving at Avalon Airport.

Hobart Airport

Hobart Express

In July 2018, SkyBus commenced services between the Hobart central business district and

Hobart Airport Hobart Airport is an airport located in Cambridge, north-east of the Hobart central business district. It is the principal airport of Tasmania.Melbourne Airport Melbourne Airport , known locally as Tullamarine Airport, is an international airport serving Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Operating 24/7 service, 24 hours a day with on-site parking, shopping and dining, Melbourne Airport is the List of th ...

in Tullamarine and

on the western edge of the Melbourne city centre, via the

and

, with no intermediate stops. At Melbourne Airport, SkyBus stops for pick up and drop off at Terminals 1 and 3, and also picks up at Terminal 4. Terminals 2 and 4 are within walking distance from the Terminal 3 stop. The service operates 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, to a 10-minute frequency between 6:00 am and 12:00 am (midnight), subject to traffic conditions. The service operates to a 30-minute frequency between 1:00 am and 4:30 am, and 15 to 30 minutes at all other times. SkyBus is not covered under the Myki ticketing system which services the rest of Melbourne. However, SkyBus allows the use of the access travel pass on all SkyBus services in Victoria only. Proposals in January 2013 by the

Victorian Government The Victoria State Government, also referred to as the Victorian Government, is the executive government of the Australian state of Victoria. As a parliamentary constitutional monarchy, the State Government was first formed in 1851 when Vic ...

to integrate SkyBus ticketing with the Myki system were shelved after opposition from

and Melbourne Airport.

Peninsula Express

The Frankston shuttle operates between Terminal 4 of

and

Frankston railway station Frankston railway station is a commuter railway station and the terminus of the Frankston line and diesel-hauled services on the Stony Point line, all part of the Melbourne railway network. It serves the south-eastern suburb of Frankston, ...

, making intermediate stops in St Kilda,

Elsternwick Elsternwick is an inner suburb in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, 9 km south-east of Melbourne's Melbourne city centre, Central Business District, located within the City of Glen Eira local government areas of Victoria ...

, Elwood,

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

, Moorabbin, Highett,

Cheltenham Cheltenham () is a historic spa town and borough adjacent to the Cotswolds in Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort following the discovery of mineral springs in 1716, and claims to be the mo ...

, Parkdale and Chelsea. A limited number of services extend to Mount Eliza and Mornington, while one weekday-only service continues further to

Dromana Dromana ( ) is a seaside suburb on the Mornington Peninsula in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Shire of Mornington Peninsula local government area. Dromana recorded a populati ...

and Rosebud.

Discontinued services

Skybus bus at Albany New Zealand 24Sept2018

Australia

Avalon Airport

The Avalon Geelong Express service operated between

and South Geelong railway station, with an intermediate stop at Geelong railway station. The service began in July 2017. The service operated to a timetable that was adjusted monthly, with one service connecting to every flight departing and arriving at Avalon Airport. The service was suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic and has not resumed as of February 2024.

Gold Coast Airport

In December 2017, SkyBus launched airport shuttle services to the

Gold Coast Airport Gold Coast Airport (formerly known as Coolangatta Airport; ) is a Domestic airport, domestic and International airport, international Australian airport located at the southern end of the Gold Coast, Queensland, Gold Coast and approximately ...

from various hotels. From 16 September 2018, the Byron Bay Express commenced running services from Gold Coast Airport to Byron Bay. The services were suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic and has not resumed as of February 2024.

Melbourne Airport

= Eastern Express

= The Eastern Express operated between Terminal 4 of

and Croydon railway station, making intermediate stops at Watsonia railway station, Westfield Doncaster, Box Hill Central, Blackburn railway station and Ringwood railway station. Outbound passengers can also be picked up at Terminal 1. The service operated daily, including all public holidays, between 4:30 am and 7:15 pm daily. The service was suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic and has not resumed as of February 2024.

= Southbank Docklands Express

= The Southbank Docklands Express operated between Terminal 4 of

and four designated stops in Southbank, with an intermediate stop in Docklands. The service began in November 2017, operating to similar frequencies and hours as the St Kilda Express. Fares were identical to that of the Melbourne City Express service. The service was suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic and has not resumed as of February 2024.

= St Kilda Express

SkyBus on Carlisle Street St Kilda August 2016

The St Kilda Express service operated between Terminal 4 of

and four designated stops in St Kilda, picking up and setting down passengers at these stops. Outbound passengers could also be picked up at Terminal 1. The service operated daily, including all public holidays, to a 30-minute frequency on weekdays and hourly on weekends. Operating hours are approximately between 6:30 am and 7:00 pm daily. Services were suspended in 2021, with the route later being subsumed into the Peninsula Express.

= Western Express

= The Western Express operated between Terminal 4 of

and Werribee, with an intermediate stop at

Tarneit railway station Tarneit railway station is a regional railway station on the Deer Park-West Werribee line, part of the Victorian railway network. It serves the western suburb of Tarneit, in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Tarneit station is a ground level ...

. Outbound passengers could also be picked up at Terminal 1. The service operated daily, including all public holidays, between 5:05 am and 8:35 pm daily. The service was suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic and has not resumed as of February 2024.

New Zealand

Auckland Airport

SkyBus operated services to

. Services were indefinitely suspended in 2021. The Auckland City Express operated between the airport and the SkyBus Lounge in the

Auckland CBD The Auckland Central Business District (CBD), or Auckland city centre, is the geographical and economic heart of the Auckland, Auckland metropolitan area. It is the area in which Auckland was established in 1840, by William Hobson on land gifted ...

, running via the Southwestern Motorway, either Dominion Road or Mount Eden Road, and Queen Street. The North Harbour Express service operated between the airport and Albany (referred to by SkyBus as Albany Westfield because of the nearby Westfield Albany shopping mall). Services ran along the Northern Busway on the North Shore section of the route, stopping at Smales Farm and Akoranga stations.

Fleet

As at September 2023, the combined fleets consisted of 68 vehicles.Skybus Auckland
Australian Bus Fleet Lists

References

External links

Australian websiteNew Zealand website
{{MelbournePublicTransport Bus companies of Victoria (state) Bus transport in Melbourne Transport companies established in 1978 1978 establishments in Australia Kinetic Group companies Bus companies of Tasmania