The Mid North's next big highway project is likely to be a roundabout at the infamous Puketona Junction.
The junction on State Highway 10, just south of Kerikeri and Bulls Gorge, is where traffic turns off to Paihia and SH11.
In the Mid North last week to open the$7.5 millon Bulls Gorge realignment, Auckland/Northland highways boss Tommy Parker told the Advocate that Puketona Junction was the next highest priority for New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) because of its potential for fatal accidents.
He hoped funding would be set aside to plan and design the roundabout in the 2013-14 financial year. If all went well, it would be built within three years.
However, the SH10/Waipapa Rd intersection, where the Far North District Council wants a roundabout to reduce queues and near-misses, was a lower priority. There was no timeline for a roundabout, and whether one would be built at all depended on projected costs and funding.
The NZTA has been criticised for basing its decisions on fatal crash data, so in effect someone must die or be seriously injured before an intersection or section of road becomes a priority.
However, Mr Parker said the agency was moving to pre-emptive risk analysis instead of setting priorities based on past crashes.
