A COMPLAINT

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 3, Issue 209, 6 September 1940, Page 5

A COMPLAINT

WHAKATANE ADVANCES "WHILE OPOTIKI SLEEPS" PROGRESSIVE ROADING DISCUSSED The views expressed by. Pioneer in a letter to the "Opotiki News," and which appeared under the apt title, "While Opotiki Sleeps," mayserve as solace to residents of Whakatane and the surrounding areas who believe that this district is not advancing. The letter reads:— If some of our residents avouUl visit Whakatane, they would see three tar sealed roads,, many miles in length, being' made from that town to Tauranga, to Edgecumbe, and to Taneatua. The principal use for the last two roads will be to cart farm produce from the railway stations to the boat which gets into the river at Whakatane when the bar is workable. On the main highway from Opotiki to "Taneatua, which would be used to cart produce to the railway station, not one chain of tar sealing has been done since the main highway board took charge of it. The formation work on the highway between the beach at Waiotahi and the bridge will be a great improvement as it cuts out many blind and dangerous corners, which might have been left until the most dangerous and difficult parts were attended to. P.W.D. Criticised. When Opotiki had a Chamber of Commerce, and the late Mr Ghas, Fleming was secretary, a strong agitation was set up to deal firstly with the most dangerous and steepest part of the highway. The chain- . ber pointed out that the most dangerous and principal obstacles on the way to the Taneatua railway station was the hill climb between Nulcuhou and Waimana, where heavily loaded lorries could be heard grinding up the hill in low gear round many blind corners ■on the zig-zag route. Many years back, officers of the Public Works Department laid off i flat road which was half a mile shorter along the foot of this hill and which could have been formed for less than half of the money. Latir on, the road came under the control of the county council, when it tvas found that the hill would be a *ood obstacle to prevent Waimana :rade going to O'potiki so it was re:ained. T'o-day a very large porion of the motorists are not interred in local trade obstacles, but vant a safe and open road in ex:hange for the tax they pay for road naking. Indifference of the People. ■{

In the Nukuhou valley there are several places where the road leaves the right grade and goes down below flood level only to turn hack again to high ground. Not long ago, about 30 cars were held up at one of these places on each side, 'while' the passengers were able to walk along the shorter grade on dry land where the road should have been and where it would have cost much less to make in the first placc. Opotiki county is now about the only place where struggling settlers can be found in New Zealand, bringing their farm produce out to the factory .without roads and where money is being waste~d when it could be used for giving relief. The question of the indifference of Opotiki people has been discussed in some quarters, and it is thought that this great difficulty might be got over by going direct from Taneatua to Matawai, without coming round by Opotiki. It might be as well for Opotiki to wake up in time, for we have reached a stage where a section of the people can no longer hold back progressive reading.