A bid to cut spending to seal Western Bays dusty rural roads has inflamed public opinion, with one resident complaining it had been nearly 40 years since the last seal extension was done on their road.
Allport Rd resident John Fowler said traffic had increased considerably on the rural Te Puke road because of the increasing popularity of the Roydon Downs Farm Park, with as many as 200 vehicles going to the park each week during holidays.
He told Western Bay district councillors on Tuesday that large numbers of logging trucks were now using Allport Rd, creating a huge dust problem. Mr Fowler said nothing had happened in the 10 years since he started making submissions and it was now nearly 40 years since the last seal extension on Allport Rd.
Geoff and Judy Neilson, of upper Reid Rd, urged the council to rethink its criteria for sealing roads, highlighting the three accidents on their section of the road, including a head-on crash on a blind bend. Roadside fences were inadequate barriers to stop a car from steep drops along many parts of the 1.5km unsealed section of the Papamoa Hills road.
Mr Neilson said the road serviced a number of attractions including people enjoying the views from the top, the Summerhill Golf Course and the Charitable Trust Farm, which included mountain bike tracks.
There was the potential for 10 more houses to be built on the golf course subdivision but the unsealed road was holding back investors, he said.
Other complaints included eight householders along Mountain Rd who said up to 200 people a day drove the road in the summer to tramp the Otanewainuku bush walks. "It is a sad reflection to have to traverse such a poorly maintained and increasingly busy road."
Earle Bragg, of Koromiko Dairies, said sealing the rest of Omanawa Rd should be a matter of urgency because of safety.
The council was also asked to seal the last 2.8km of Thompsons Track at Katikati because it was a main access and vital for rescues, searches and fire fighting.