"I can't understand it. The money was allocated, the land was purchased, they printed the plans, so why now have they stopped it?" Nelson said.
Police data showed in the past 10 years, at least 13 people were killed on the Tauranga stretch of SH29 on the Kaimai Range. In 2009 and 2013, two of those fatal crashes were at the Belk Rd intersection. Residents have now questioned how many more deaths would be needed before they could at least have the turning bay.
"It's heartbreaking," Nelson said.
"I've seen so many near misses. I always think about my friends and family when they are driving there."
The intersection is nestled at the base of a hill and inside a bend within a 100km/h zone.
Fellow resident Leigh Neilson said the transport agency talked a load of "waffle" at the council meeting and residents came away feeling their efforts were a waste of time.
"It's really an issue of safety. We feel frustrated and fear for our safety," he said.
Neilson, who has lived on Belk Rd for 30 years, accused the agency of pandering to developers and not paying attention to the needs of residents and taxpayers.
"You've got to ask the question - it's a government organisation, who are they accountable to?" Neilson said.
In 2011, property developer Bob Clarkson offered the Government $1 million to make the intersection safer. There has since been much discussion about improving the site but little physical work.
"We've been lied to. Because for years they've been having publications and meetings and consultations which told us what they were doing and now we find out it's not happening?
"They've led us up the garden path. We've been shafted."
At Thursday's meeting, senior project manager Angela Crean confirmed the planned improvements would no longer go ahead, partly because of future development expected from Tauriko Business Estate.
Afterwards, residents asked: "How many people have to die on the road before something is done?". Others labelled the decision as "ridiculous".
"It's not as though it's a major development, we just want a turning bay and a deceleration lane," one man said.
The agency has already spent $267,000 on design, consenting, property, legal and other fees. It estimated it would spend up to $800,000 to complete the project.
In response to Neilson's concerns of the agency "pandering to developers", transport agency project manager John McCarthy said the agency was committed to making improvements to address safety concerns "whilst ensuring integration of work with the wider Tauriko programme business case solutions, and to keeping the community informed".
McCarthy said the agency would always take on board the views and concerns of residents and others in the community.
Speed limits in the Kaimai Range to be reviewed
The New Zealand Transport Agency is proposing a speed review into the current speed limits on SH29 in the Kamai Range. Consultation on this is expected to take place early next year. As part of the review, SH29 intersections involving Poripori Rd, Belk Rd, Cambridge Rd and a proposed tie in for Tauriko Business Estate will be assessed.
