Newcastle bus routes connect suburbs in and around Newcastle and Lake Macquarie, about 100 kilometres north of Sydney. Newcastle is the second-largest city in the state of New South Wales, serving as a regional centre for residents of the Central Coast, Hunter Valley and Great Lakes regions. Bus services within Newcastle are operated by Newcastle Transport. It also operates a ferry service across the Hunter River between Newcastle's CBD and Stockton. Hunter Valley Buses also operate many routes in the area. These two main operators have an east–west split, with Newcastle Transport buses mostly covering the inner city and coastal region east of the lake as far south as Swansea, while Hunter Valley Buses cover the region west of the lake, Newcastle Airport, and outlying suburbs and towns, ex