Grainger said residents had complained the Bay of Plenty Regional Council Transport Committee had put road improvements to Omokoroa to Te Puna at number 11 on its priority list and they had since started a petition.
A Facebook post encouraging people to sign the petition said state highway intersection improvements were 14th and the Katikati bypass was last on the list, at 15th.
He said the petition was driven by local residents, who planned to take their submission to the council's transport committee in the hope the council would change the priority rating.
Grainger said residents were concerned funds would not be invested into road improvements in the area in the next six years and upgrades would be a decade away.
"It is one of the most dangerous roads in the country," he said.
"We have to stand up strongly for our area to convince the council that the money should be spent here and not elsewhere," he said.
Grainger said the road was becoming too dangerous because of the population growth in Omokoroa and traffic was regularly backed up in the area.
"With the growth of the port and kiwifruit industry, which is great for the area, there is more trucks on the road," he said. "There is a lot more people living here. Everywhere you look there is more traffic."
"Accidents tend to happen at intersections," he said. "If you can get rid of the intersections we will get rid of the injuries and deaths on our roads."
Regional council Transport Committee chairman Stuart Crosby said he appreciated the frustration felt among residents and he had already received letters and planned to meet with the Omokoroa community on Wednesday.
The plan was still a draft for now and out for consultation, he said.
Crosby said there were many people who agreed the stretch of highway should be treated with a higher priority "and I would anticipate the priority would be raised".
"Clearly that stretch of road from Tauranga to basically beyond Katikati does require significant work. Having driven that road a lot it's pretty obvious how those accidents can happen."
A police media spokeswoman said police were investigating Saturday's crash.
A Waikato District Health Board spokeswoman said a 52-year-old man, believed to be from Tauranga, was in a serious condition in Waikato Hospital's High Dependency Unit on Sunday.
Bay of Plenty District Health Board communications manager Diana Marriott said a 50-year-old Mount Maunganui woman was in a stable condition in Tauranga Hospital's Intensive Care Unit on Sunday.
A 62-year-old Katikati woman was discharged from Tauranga Hospital on Sunday night.
Omokoroa deputy chief fire officer Simon Priest said the stretch of road was notorious for crashes and the Omokoroa Volunteer Fire Brigade attended many crashes between Katikati and Tauranga.
Priest lived close to where the accident happened and said there was "a share volume of traffic" that used the road.
"Every time it is like an accident waiting to happen," he said. "The whole stretch of road is bad."
