The first day of the State Highway 29 Bayfair underpass has been a hit with the community, with one person saying it is "better for the traffic and better for us".
The underpass was being used steadily when the Bay of Plenty Times went to see it yesterday morning.
Mount Maunganui resident Maureen Hawley had a clear reaction to the opening: "Hallelujah!"
"I'm very happy to see it - it's been a long time coming."
She said the underpass made it much easier for her to get across the road, and she would be using it "lots".
She said she was "sad" when it was taken away, but was glad to see it return as a safer way to cross the road.
Fellow member Joan Hutchinson said the underpass was "better than going into the traffic... better for the traffic and better for us".
Clayton Walden has been walking across the road beside Bayfair for more than 10 years, and said the underpass would be his new route.
He said he "would love ideally for people not to use their cars", and thought the underpass would make it easier to cycle or walk.
A Mount Maunganui walking group using the underpass. Left to right: Gwen McClelland, Joy Fraser, Sharon McEwen, Joan Hutchinson, Barbara Talbot. Photo / Talia Parker
Another user, who did not wish to be named, said he was "pleased that it's eventuated".
"Crossing is a lot safer."
He thought the open section above the underpass might improve its safety and prevent people from congregating there.
Mount Maunganui resident Bill Biehler said the underpass was "brilliant".
Biehler moves around in a mobility car, which is an enclosed mobility scooter, and said it was "nice to go down there, and smooth when you go across there".
"I really enjoyed it."
He said he would use the underpass "very regularly" and would feel "100 per cent safer" than crossing the road.
Bill Biehler's mobility car on the first day of the underpass. Photo / supplied
Jennifer Custins, president of Grey Power Tauranga, said she could "only see it [the underpass] as a positive".
Custins was involved in the development of the underpass once it was added to the B2B plan.
"I would've thought for active people who were going to walk anywhere... and definitely for people with mobility scooters, I imagine it would be an absolute boon."
"It's wider, safer, lighter, easier, all of that - it's been designed to get people from that one side to the other in a comfortable environment and manner."
She said there were a lot of people between 60 and 75 who biked around the city who would use it "instead of having to negotiate traffic lights".
Grey Power president Jennifer Custins. Photo / John Borren
She had yet to visit the underpass, but had seen images and artist's impressions of it.
"It all looks very nice, probably one of the better achievements in Tauranga.
"I feel that it's more likely to encourage somebody to walk, and you know, the exercise is good... I can only see it as a positive in this day and age.
"The proof will be in people using it for a few months, but I'd be surprised if people were going to start complaining about it."
Waka Kotahi's regional manager of infrastructure delivery Jo Wilton said it was "tremendous to have the underpass open for use, knowing how much it means to the community".
Waka Kotahi's Waikato and Bay of Plenty regional manager of infrastructure delivery Jo Wilton. Photo / supplied
"Today, we've seen families walking through it, and a number of people on foot and bikes using it to get where they're going safely. Our team on the ground reports a lot of smiling faces."
She said there would be further improvements to the underpass before it was fully completed, including cultural design elements created in collaboration with local hapū Ngā Potiki, Ngāi Tukairangi and Ngāti Tapu.
Wilton clarified that cyclists were not required to dismount their bikes while using the underpass.
"The underpass is a shared space and intended to be used by people on foot, bikes, scooters, mobility scooters and wheelchairs. We ask people to be considerate and take care."
