"That is all more impressive when you consider the March Covid-19 lockdown occurred during a peak time in the construction season. I'm very grateful to staff and contractors, who managed to make up for time lost due to the lockdown. Only the North Park Drive to Whangatane Drive shared-use path in Kaitaia was delayed, and that is now progressing."
Some of the credit for the increase in construction went to the council's Footpath Priority Matrix, which, similar to the road sealing matrix developed by the council, established a priority list of projects based on greatest need and benefit. The list was fact-checked by the community boards in each ward.
"Combining the tool with an assessment of each path's condition allows us to make the most of the footpath funding we receive from NZTA," he added.
"In the past we had just $150,000 to build footpaths in each ward. We have worked hard to increase that total to the $767,500 we spent in the 2019/20 financial year."
The council also spent more than $680,000 on renewing existing footpaths, and around $100,000 on footpath maintenance across the district.
