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Home / New Zealand

Calls for extra safety on 'unforgiving road' after SH29 fatal crash

Jean Bell
By Jean Bell
Multimedia journalist·Bay of Plenty Times·
17 Jun, 2019 05:42 PM2 mins to read

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Traffic waits on SH29 as emergency services deal with a fatal crash. Photo / George Novak

Traffic waits on SH29 as emergency services deal with a fatal crash. Photo / George Novak

Another life has been lost of Western Bay of Plenty roads, sparking concern at the level of safety on an already "unforgiving road".

The Serious Crash Unit is investigating a crash involving two vehicles on State Highway 29 yesterday. One person died at the scene and two others were also hurt.

The highway was closed for several hours after the crash was reported to emergency services at 2.20pm.

The fatality is the latest to an already "grim" Bay of Plenty road toll. By May 25, there had already been 40 people killed on the Bay's roads. It is understood yesterday's death brought the toll to 41.

Joint Road Safety Committee chairwoman and Western Bay district councillor Margaret Murray-Benge was shocked.

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"Another crash and another life lost. I am absolutely horrified."

Murray-Benge said the road, along with Ōmanawa and Poripori bridges, was in desperate need of upgrading and widening. Both bridges were positioned near bends where the road narrowed considerably.

She also pointed to intersections in the area, such as Poripori Rd and Belk Rd.

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"The Poripori intersection is dynamite, it's scary and dangerous."

Murray-Benge said the road was too congested and needed an upgrade to accommodate the increased number of freight trucks.

"State Highway 29 is the main lifeline of the port and we need to nurture that."

She said bad driving was sometimes to blame for crashes but the road did not help.

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"They are driving on an unforgiving road."

Murray-Benge said SH2 and SH29 were both notorious for claiming lives.

Tauriko School principal Suzanne Billington said there were often crashes on SH29, especially after a touch of rain.

"When we hear police cars or ambulances go up the road we're always thinking about who it is," said Billington.

She said yesterday afternoon's crash was especially worrisome as it occurred around school pick-up time.

"Parents are coming down to pick children up and we were wondering if it was one of them," she said.

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A local woman, who would not be named, said the crash required a large number of emergency vehicles to attend.

"We haven't had anything like this in a long time.

"It seemed bad."

The woman said it was a busy road teeming with "very large trucks" heading towards the Port of Tauranga.

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