IMPORTANT CHANGES TO ROADS IN YOUR AREA

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PROPOSED SPEED LIMIT CHANGES

PROPOSED ROAD NAME CHANGES

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

TE PUKE ROAD CORRIDOR

What is the Te Puke Corridor?The Te Puke Corridor is the section of State Highway 2 between the Paengaroa roundabout (the intersection of State Highway 2/State Highway 33) and the Domain Road interchange at Papamoa.

Why is the state highway status in the Te Puke Corridor changing?The change is due to the opening of the Tauranga Eastern Link (TEL) in mid-2015. This was part of the funding conditions by the Government for the TEL. The highway will change to an arterial road, as the TEL will remove much of the heavy traffic from the Te Puke Corridor.

What does withdrawal of the state highway status involve?

It basically involves transferring ownership and maintenance responsibilities of the state highway to the local council.

Can a council object and not have to take over the state highway?The law under which the Transport Agency operates gives it the power to withdraw a state highway status and declare it a local road. A council cannot stop the process as the Transport Agency seeks to achieve the transfer of the road in the best possible condition.

What will the road name be? Council is responsible for the road naming process. Public consultation is now under way with submissions closing 27 February, 2015. The section from No1 Road to Te

Puke Quarry Road is currently Jellicoe Street and will retain that name.

New names are required for the section of SH2 from Domain Road to Te Puke Quarry Road, and from No1 Road to Paengaroa roundabout.

Table 2 (right) is a list of suggested name options to date. These names avoid any conflict and duplication with existing road names in the Western Bay. 

You can make a submission declaring which name(s) you support, or oppose. You are also invited to put forward names you think appropriate. We ask these be supported with your reasoning. Please use the enclosed submission form or visit www.westernbay.govt.nz.

On or around 1 July 2015 this stretch of road will cease to be a state highway and will become a local road, owned and operated by Council.

The Transport Agency and Western Bay of Plenty District Council are working to ensure the Te Puke Corridor is ‘fit for purpose’ for its new function as an arterial road serving the Te Puke community.

This includes ensuring the road encourages through-traffic to use the TEL, unless motorists need, or want, to travel through Te Puke.

Most of the work will happen once the TEL is opened, as there will be less traffic to contend with. It is the intention that all work and the Transport Agency’s commitments to the Te Puke Corridor will be finished

within two years of the TEL opening – approximately July, 2017.

The TEL is expected to attract the heavy vehicles travelling to the Port of Tauranga. We expect that the majority of remaining large vehicles using the existing road will have an origin or destination of Te Puke or its surrounds.

BENEFITS AND OPPORTUNITIES OF THE CHANGE INCLUDE:

• A significant reduction in through-traffic, especially heavy vehicles.

• An opportunity to invest in, and redesign, the Te Puke town centre.

• An opportunity to place greater emphasis on access and connectivity in the town, including pedestrian and cycling facilities.

The safety of the corridor will be reviewed and speed limits addressed by Council. The Transport Agency recognises the impact of these changes and will make a financial grant to Council to assist with development of the town centre.

There may be some drivers who choose to use the existing road to avoid paying the TEL toll. This is not expected to create significant additional transport costs to Council.

There are a number of examples where withdrawal of a state highway has occurred once a new bypass has opened: the Pyes Pa Bypass, the Northern Gateway Toll Road north of Auckland and the Te Rapa section of the Waikato Expressway.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOWIn 2009 the Government approved tolling the Tauranga Eastern Link (TEL), enabling construction to begin years earlier than planned. Part of this process included a requirement to withdraw the existing state highway status from the Te Puke Corridor – stretching between the Domain Road interchange at Papamoa and the Paengaroa roundabout.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

TE PUKE ROAD CORRIDOR

Welcome Bay Road

Domain Road

No3 Road

King Street

Kenana Road

Kaituna River

2

33

TAURANGA EASTERN LINK (TEL)

Te Puke Quarry Road

Whakatane

Rotorua

2Tauranga

DOMAIN ROADINTERCHANGE

PAENGAROAROUNDABOUT

TE PUKE

2

TE PUKE CORRIDOR

PROPOSED NEW SPEED LIMITS

80Km/h

Waiari Stream

70Km/h

Collins Lane 50Km/h

80Km/h

80Km/h

Te Matai Road

70Km/h

70Km/h

No1 Road

Kaituna River

Km/h START LOCATION END LOCATION

80 District boundary: Domain Rd Interchange

200m west of Collins Lane

70 200m west of Collins Lane

130m west of Te Puke Quarry Rd

50 130m west of Te Puke Quarry Rd

300m east of King St

70 300m east of King St

East end of Waiari Stream Bridge

80 East end of Waiari Stream Bridge

35m east of Kenana Rd

70 35m east of Kenana Road

100m east of Kaituna River Bridge

80 100m east of Kaituna River Bridge

Paengaroa/TEL roundabout

THE SECTION OF ROAD BETWEEN DOMAIN ROAD &

TE PUKE QUARRY ROAD

THE SECTION OF ROAD BETWEEN NO 1 ROAD & PAENGAROA

ROUNDABOUT

McNaughton Rd Goodness Highway

Long Swamp Rd Te Kapua Rd

Packhouse Rd Huanui Highway

Whiteside Rd Jutland Rd

Jutland Rd Packhouse Rd

Green Rd Green Rd

Gold Rd Gold Rd

TABLE 1: PROPOSED NEW SPEED LIMITS TABLE 2: TE PUKE CORRIDOR PROPOSED NAME OPTIONS

N

westernbay.govt.nz • Te Kaunihera a rohe mai i nga Kuri-a-Wharei ki Otamarakau ki te Uru People • Plan • Progress

What will the speed limit be?Council has proposed the speed limit on the rural sections of the Te Puke Corridor should be 80km/h to improve safety and reflect the changed function of the road.

There is also a proposal to extend the 50km/h section to the Domain Road side of Te Puke Quarry Road and to extend the 70km/h limit in the same area.

On the east side of Te Puke the proposal is to replace the present 80km/h section with 70km/h.

Will there be changes to property numbers?Yes, the section from Domain Road to Te Puke Quarry Road will need new numbers for each property.

The section from No 1 Road to the Paengaroa roundabout will retain existing property numbers.

Council will send affected property owners a letter advising them of their new road name and confirming their site address. Council will also install the Rural Identification Number on entranceways/ letterboxes at no cost to you.

Council will also advise New Zealand Post, Land Information New Zealand as well as a range of other parties including emergency services, public health providers, agri-business organisations based in and around Te Puke and community groups such as ratepayer associations.

Will these changes affect my rates?The estimated cost to Council to maintain

the road is in the range of $500,000-$750,000 per year.

The actual figure will be determined through a combination of assessing the impact of the change, safety improvements and contract negotiations with the road maintenance contractor.

This additional cost may not increase rates as Council has (a) achieved a significant saving on its current road maintenance contract and (b) received an increase in financial assistance (subsidy) from the Transport Agency.

This amounts to approximately $240,000 in the 2015/16 year (1 July 2015 – 30 June 2016) and increases by about $120,000 per year, up to a total increase of $720,000 per year. Against this, Council may be able to cover the additional cost of maintaining the road.

I don’t live in the vicinity of the Te Puke Corridor so why should my rates subsidise this road?Council funds roading and a number of other activities on a ‘district-wide’ basis. Ratepayers benefit from road maintenance throughout New Zealand funded by individual councils and the Transport Agency. Equally ratepayers in Te Puke provide funding towards activities throughout the district.

What work will be done on the road as part of the change and what is the expected cost?A range of improvement and maintenance work, estimated to cost about $10million, will be undertaken by the Transport Agency prior to and after the handover. Work includes:

• Safety improvements • Deferred and advanced maintenance• Welcome Bay Road roundabout

construction • Resealing of the current 100km/h

sections• Urban improvements in Waitangi• Improvements in the Te Puke main street.

Will there be public consultation and input?Yes, you can have a say on:• Proposed changes to the speed limits• Design of the Te Puke main street area

to reflect the reduced traffic and changed function of the road

• Improvements to Waitangi• Re-naming of the road.

Please use the enclosed submission form or visit www.westernbay.govt.nz.

Will the road look different after the work is done?Yes, it will have a wide centre line (between 0.5m and 1.0m) and slightly narrower traffic lanes in the current 100 km/h sections. There could also be some changes in the Te Puke town centre and improvements to the entrances of Te Puke and Waitangi.

Will Council be undertaking additional work?The Te Puke Community Board recently adopted an improvement plan for the section between the Te Puke commercial area to No3 Road which will cost about $950,000 to implement.

Council is proposing to undertake this work later to assist in changing the form of the road and improving the entrance to Te Puke.

Please visit our website www.westernbay.govt.nz for further information.You’re also welcome to contact the following members of the Council team:

NEED FURTHER INFO?

For further information on changes to road names and property numbersplease contact Jody Schuurman on 571 8008, or email: jody.schuurman@westernbay.govt.nz

For further information on proposed changes to speed limitsplease contact Alex Finn on 571 8008, or email: alex.finn@westernbay.govt.nz

goodness grows here

TE PUKE ROAD CORRIDOR

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Continued...