Impetus to lobby
$600 million more on roads in the regions in this three-year period. This petition is simply a political stunt.”
Annie Rose, a Te Puna resident, believed it was generally the drivers, not the road, at fault.
Rose was taking her grandchildren to school when she heard a screeching sound and people shouting.
The grandmother had lived on the state highway for 14 years and heard an ambulance rushing by “maybe twice a day”.
Rose said the problem was speeding and impatient drivers.
People rushing to get to work meant tailgating and other reckless driving was common on the stretch of road, she said.
“It’s all about patience. Surely their lives are more important than bloody work?”
Colleen Thwaites is another resident who has dealt with more than her fair share of serious crashes. Her son was killed on the road 32 years ago.
“He was two weeks off turning 20,” she said.
She heard the sirens yesterday. “It is an ongoing thing here every day.
“I have lived here for 44 years and we used to hear a siren once a month if we were lucky and now we hear it four times a day.
“I hear the screech and then wait for the crash. Even my dog does it now.”
Thwaites said there had been three fatal accidents outside her home.
Attacking the issue from another angle was fellow campaigner Matthew Farrell, whose petition, signed by 2500 people supporting the blocking of future housing development in the Western Bay, was submitted to SmartGrowth on November 5.
Farrell said the petition called for councils to fix the road and infrastructure before more houses were built.
“The crosses are there for a reason. That particular section of the road between the Te Puke stream bridge and Loop Rd and the Apata bends are the two deadliest stretches of state highway in the country.”
Western Bay of Plenty mayor Gary Webber was scheduled to fly to Wellington for the presentation of the