Grieving widower thanks Tauranga community for their support

The grieving husband of an American tourist killed while on a cycling tour wants to thank the Tauranga community for their condolences and support.

The 71-year-old New York woman died at the scene near the Tauranga Harbour Bridge onramp on Dive Cres on Tuesday.

The couple had been travelling on the cruise ship Celebrity Solstice which berthed at the Port of Tauranga at 8am that day.

The woman was on a harbourside bike tour with several other passengers when the collision occurred about midday.

Legacy Funerals director Mike Savage spoke to the Bay of Plenty Times on behalf of the dead woman's husband.

"He is very grateful to the community for all their condolences and the outpouring of support he has received since his wife's death. He is very appreciative and wants to say a huge thank you to the people of Tauranga.''

Mr Savage said arrangements were being made to fly the woman's body back to New York where the couple live.

Since the death there have been calls from cyclist advocates pushing for major upgrades to Tauranga's cycling network.

Glen Crowther, of the Sustainable Business Network's Bike Now, earlier said Tauranga's cycleways needed to be made safer and separated from other traffic.

Heidi Hughes from Bike Mount said it was no longer appropriate to have cyclists and cars sharing the same roads.