Concrete wall, extra security at work site
A two-metre concrete wall has been built in front of a worksite at the top of Mt Messenger as the $280 million bypass gets back on track after the eviction of protesters.
The barrier, built from interlocking concrete blocks, with ‘‘no trespassing’’ signs, has been put in place by Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency, along with extra security.
The move follows a police operation last Thursday that brought an end to a 26-day site occupation and saw traffic on Taranaki’s main arterial route over the mountain, State Highway 3, stopped for about three hours.
‘‘There is a small additional cost of bolstering the security that was already in place on site, which is currently being met within the overall project budget,’’ a Waka Kotahi spokesperson said.
All protesters’ belongings had been removed from the area, where the central tower of a 1.1km cableway to transport workers, material and heavy equipment is being built.
No damage had been caused to the central tower site, Waka Kotahi said.
But those opposing the selected route of the bypass say they are not giving up on protecting the Mangapēpeke Valley.
One social media post said the rangatahi who had been on site wanted to retake the area and saw the wall as ‘‘an easy challenge’’.
Protester Chris Wilkes said they had had a few ‘‘solid debriefs’’, and there were a couple of plans in place.
‘‘It’s one of those situations where, in the fullness of time, when more information comes out, I think people are going to start waking up to what’s actually happening up there as far as the money side of things especially.’’
Wilkes said the police operation was ‘‘basically a removal exercise’’ and the protesters had never caused any disruption to the road.
Ten arrests were made on the day including Wilkes, who said they were taken to the police station, issued new trespass notices and released with no further charge.
‘‘It was never our intention to disrupt traffic. The fact that they shut the road down for three hours – I couldn’t believe it – crazy.
‘‘We think that may have been to try and turn people against the occupation itself, you know, dramatise the situation.
‘‘There was no need for it at all, really.’’
The Te Ara o Te Ata bypass of Mt Messenger is Taranaki’s biggest roading scheme and was first proposed in 2016 when the Government announced it would invest up to $105m for bypasses at Mt Messenger and the Awakino tunnel.