Lizard News MARCH 2023
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Station Road may be closed permanently
By Matthew Farrell e Puna Station Road appears likely to be closed to traffic other than cyclists for several months and probably permanently, as the District Council weighs up competing demands from more than 30 unexpected roading projects following Cyclone Gabrielle. The Western Bay land mass seemed to be protected by Matakana Island as the devastating weather system moved south east from Northland on Sunday 12th February to Hawkes Bay on Wednesday 15th February,
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compounding the record rainfall of former Cyclone Hale during Auckland Anniversary Weekend at the end of January. Around 50 homes were evacuated across Waihī Beach and Athenree in the west of the region and Maketū and Little Waihī to the east, due to Gabrielle. Mayor James Denyer told Local Democracy Reporting tree falls, slips, power outages and coastal flooding were the main issues caused by the cyclone. Infrastructure Manager Gary Allis says the Ōmokoroa
wastewater pipe that runs below Station Road has been assessed and there are no concerns at this stage. New underslips, overslips and material across the road have ended the back roads “rat run” and forced all rush hour traffic to use State Highway 2. Councillor Don Thwaites, who chaired Council’s projects and monitoring committee on 22nd February, says personally he’s seen a massive time saving from beyond Snodgrass Road. “At Wairoa Marae the maximum volume is 25 vehicles per minute or 1,500 per hour at 50kph. Station Road closure has no impact on SH2 capacity,” Don tells Lizard News. Fellow Te Puna Councillor Tracey Coxhead says she doesn’t think locals will be too fazed by closure. “Some would be legitimate users, not rat runners, but we’d need to stop trucks using Clarke Road due to its width,” she says. Cllr Margaret Murray Benge says there is great division within the community about the closure, and says some used the rat run because they could easily drive at 120kph. Traffic monitoring will be carried out and Mayor James Denyer said he wanted to hear from the wider community and get the full feeling from an engagement process. Gary Allis says with 30-odd sites to rectify, his preferred option was to leave the road closed to vehicles for at least “some time” because SH2 is a a clear alternative access. “Station Road is not going to be a resilient road in the future. Yes it has shifted traffic queues and delays further back, but the bigger picture is the TNL will open in 2027/28,” says Gary. Lizard News understands the Department of Conservation has also been notified about roosting shags on the waterline, which would trigger additional Regional Council compliance. Station Road’s future is next discussed by the full Council on Thursday 16th March.