Wollongong MP Paul Scully made the claim on Thursday, saying the review's finding would be available by October and will be used to decide on the future of the Gong Shuttle after June 30, 2021.

That is the date a joint funding arrangement between Transport for NSW, the University of Wollongong and Wollongong City Council expires.

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Council and UOW agreed to fund the shuttle to the tune of $350,000 each for three years to stop the government's plans to introduce fares on the free bus.

"There is no excuse for Transport for NSW to carry on with a secret review deliberately excluding the community," Mr Scully said.

"I have today written to the Minister for Transport and Roads, Andrew Constance, calling for the secret review to be open to community input and transparency, and that it is publicly released immediately upon completion."

However Transport for NSW said Mr Scully had gotten it wrong - there is no secret review.

"The current funding agreement between Transport for NSW, the University of Wollongong and Wollongong City Council requires all three parties to enter into discussions to review the service and its cost benefit by March 2020," a Transport for NSW spokeswoman said.'.

That meeting took place on March 25.

The spokeswoman said "all parties are then required to assess the findings of the review and determine the operation of the Gong Shuttle" by October this year.

Plans to introduce fares on the shuttle were released in November 2017 - the target date was January 29.

"Introducing a fare on the Wollongong Shuttle will encourage these customers to make use of the other services available to them, helping to spread the load across these services for the benefit of the entire network," a Transport for NSW spokesman said at the time.