Rotorua Daily Post
  • Rotorua Daily Post home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Residential property listings
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Rural
  • Sport

Locations

  • Tauranga
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales

Weather

  • Rotorua
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Rotorua Daily Post

Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says giving up on some Coromandel roads might be the best solution

Dan Hutchinson
By Dan Hutchinson
Waikato News Director·Taupo & Turangi Herald·
9 Mar, 2023 03:30 AM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Watch: Amazing aerial footage shows the scale of SH25A destruction
An amazing video shot from a light aircraft on Saturday shows the sheer enormity of the task facing Waka Kotahi to repair the Kopu to Hikuai Road, State Highway 25a on the Coromandel Peninsula. Video / Philip Hart ...
Video Player is loading.
Current Time 0:00
/
Duration 0:00
Loaded: 0%
0:00
Stream Type LIVE
Remaining Time -0:00
 
1x
    • Chapters
    • descriptions off, selected
    • captions settings, opens captions settings dialog
    • captions off, selected

      This is a modal window.

      Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window.

      Text
      Text Background
      Caption Area Background
      Font Size
      Text Edge Style
      Font Family

      End of dialog window.

      This is a modal window. This modal can be closed by pressing the Escape key or activating the close button.

      The Big Sleepout returns after 6 years

      UP NEXT:

      Autoplay in
      4
      Disable Autoplay
      Cancel Video
      An amazing video shot from a light aircraft on Saturday shows the sheer enormity of the task facing Waka Kotahi to repair the Kopu to Hikuai Road, State Highway 25a on the Coromandel Peninsula. Video / Philip Hart
      NOW PLAYING • Watch: Amazing aerial footage shows the scale of SH25A destruction
      An amazing video shot from a light aircraft on Saturday shows the sheer enormity of the task facing Waka Kotahi to repair the Kopu to Hikuai Road, State Highway 25a on the Coromandel Peninsula. Video / Philip Hart ...

      Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says conversations need to be had about whether repairing roads like State Highway 25A is worth it, but building a “resilient transport network” is a big priority.

      The highway closed in January after the formation of deep cracks, slips and flooding damage from ex-cyclone Hale over Auckland Anniversary weekend, and was expected to be closed for up to a year.

      Hipkins said it might be best to “give up” on some roads rather than try to fight a losing battle.

      “Do we actually say, ‘That road we give up on and [we’ll] build a different road somewhere else’? Those are the sorts of conversations we need to have in the Coromandel.

      Advertisement
      Advertise with NZME.
      Advertisement
      Advertise with NZME.

      “That highway [SH25A] has been rebuilt multiple times, and no sooner is it re-opened, everyone’s enjoying it again, and boom - it gets washed out again.

      “If we are going to have a transport connection there, do we need to re-route? Do we put it somewhere else?”

      The highway was one of the main tourist routes for holidaymakers heading to the Thames-Coromandel region, and business owners fear its closure could lead to them losing another summer’s trade by the time it’s repaired.

      The massive landslide that sliced through State Highway 25A, which is still closed. Photo / RNZ
      The massive landslide that sliced through State Highway 25A, which is still closed. Photo / RNZ

      When asked if the huge cost of cyclone damage would eat into the budget for projects that were already planned, Hipkins signalled a Labour government would look to increase the overall investment in the road network.

      Advertisement
      Advertise with NZME.

      “Those sorts of trade-offs have been made in the past. Less money going into road maintenance in order to fund the roads of national significance, like Transmission Gully [and the] Waikato Expressway.

      “I would never argue that those are not really valuable things to fund. I live in Wellington, and I look at Transmission Gully, and it has transformed transport for the Wellington network, but I don’t think you can do it as an either/or.

      “I think you have to fund the road maintenance, the road upgrades and some of those newer, bigger projects. Transmission Gully has added resilience to Wellington’s transport. Similar to the Waikato Expressway, that has added huge resilience to that region. I think we have got to do both.”

      An aerial view of State Highway 25A. Photo / Philip Hart
      An aerial view of State Highway 25A. Photo / Philip Hart

      Hipkins said the network was never going to be “perfect” and the road between Tauranga and Hamilton “needs a bit of work”.

      “Over time, we can plug in more bits and fill in more pieces of the puzzle.”

      Speaking to media in Coromandel this afternoon, Hipkins said it had “quite a future of road cones ahead” as officials worked through a “really big job, not just here, but around the rest of the country”.

      “I think the reality is, the work is going to take as long as it takes.

      “I think what the recent extreme weather has shown us is that there are a number of vulnerabilities across the country.

      Read More

      • Cyclone Gabrielle: Pregnant Coromandel woman faces ...
      • SH25 Coromandel: Stop/go solution for closed road tonight ...
      • Coromandel goes to extremes to bring back tourists ...
      • State Highway 25 in Coromandel partially reopens to ...
      • Earthquake strikes Coromandel Peninsula...

      “We’re dealing with areas that are still very weak now, and with more rain and moisture heading into winter, we know that we could be facing some further challenges ahead, including more washouts, more slips and so on.”

      Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport Agency regional relationships director David Speirs said it was still looking into the most viable options for repairing SH25A.

      Advertisement
      Advertise with NZME.

      “At the moment, the site is still moving, so getting good geotech is a real challenge.

      “That’s our problem at the moment - we’ve got to wait for the site to settle.

      “Once the site settles, we can get some good geotech and some certainty around how long [repairs will take], and invest [in] the most viable option.”

      Save

        Share this article

      Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

      Rotorua Daily Post

      Mixed verdicts delivered for Tribesmen accused of murdering one of their own

      11 Jul 05:00 AM
      Rotorua Daily Post

      Pair deny charges over death of Paige Johnson in alleged hit-and-run

      11 Jul 12:26 AM
      Rotorua Daily Post

      Home-schooled students ride 755km to Parliament for equal sports access

      10 Jul 11:07 PM

      From early mornings to easy living

      sponsored
      Advertisement
      Advertise with NZME.
      Recommended for you
      Storm leaves 13,000 without power in Tasman
      New Zealand

      Storm leaves 13,000 without power in Tasman

      11 Jul 08:18 AM
      'S*** happens': Injured motorcyclist's gracious response to being hit by car
      New Zealand

      'S*** happens': Injured motorcyclist's gracious response to being hit by car

      11 Jul 08:00 AM
      O’Connor returns as Wallabies prepare for British and Irish Lions
      Sport

      O’Connor returns as Wallabies prepare for British and Irish Lions

      11 Jul 07:56 AM
      ‘Honour’ murder: Father kills daughter over TikTok account
      World

      ‘Honour’ murder: Father kills daughter over TikTok account

      11 Jul 07:51 AM
      'Challenging conditions': Luxury retail giant DFS closing Kiwi stores
      Retail

      'Challenging conditions': Luxury retail giant DFS closing Kiwi stores

      11 Jul 07:43 AM

      Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

      Mixed verdicts delivered for Tribesmen accused of murdering one of their own

      Mixed verdicts delivered for Tribesmen accused of murdering one of their own

      11 Jul 05:00 AM

      Mark 'Shark' Hohua died in June 2022 after a violent assault over money.

      Pair deny charges over death of Paige Johnson in alleged hit-and-run

      Pair deny charges over death of Paige Johnson in alleged hit-and-run

      11 Jul 12:26 AM
      Home-schooled students ride 755km to Parliament for equal sports access

      Home-schooled students ride 755km to Parliament for equal sports access

      10 Jul 11:07 PM
      Heavy rain warning issued for Bay of Plenty, up to 140mm expected

      Heavy rain warning issued for Bay of Plenty, up to 140mm expected

      10 Jul 10:57 PM
      Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
      sponsored

      Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

      NZ Herald
      • About NZ Herald
      • Meet the journalists
      • Newsletters
      • Classifieds
      • Help & support
      • Contact us
      • House rules
      • Privacy Policy
      • Terms of use
      • Competition terms & conditions
      • Our use of AI
      Subscriber Services
      • Rotorua Daily Post e-edition
      • Manage your print subscription
      • Manage your digital subscription
      • Subscribe to Herald Premium
      • Subscribe to the Rotorua Daily Post
      • Gift a subscription
      • Subscriber FAQs
      • Subscription terms & conditions
      • Promotions and subscriber benefits
      NZME Network
      • Rotorua Daily Post
      • The New Zealand Herald
      • The Northland Age
      • The Northern Advocate
      • Waikato Herald
      • Bay of Plenty Times
      • Hawke's Bay Today
      • Whanganui Chronicle
      • Viva
      • NZ Listener
      • Newstalk ZB
      • BusinessDesk
      • OneRoof
      • Driven Car Guide
      • iHeart Radio
      • Restaurant Hub
      NZME
      • About NZME
      • NZME careers
      • Advertise with NZME
      • Digital self-service advertising
      • Book your classified ad
      • Photo sales
      • NZME Events
      • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
      TOP
      search by queryly Advanced Search