A Bay of Plenty and Coromandel transport package will create hundreds of jobs and drive economic growth across this fast-growing region, National's transport spokesman Chris Bishop announced when visiting Katikati on Friday with Coromandel MP Scott Simpson.
Bishop announced a suite of local transport projects that he says National will deliver in Government. This includes building the full Tauranga to Katikati Expressway, complete with a bypass at Katikati that will be a priority in the party's first term.
This project will connect the Bay of Plenty and Coromandel with a new world-class, four-lane expressway, replacing one of the most dangerous sections of the roads in the country.
This is great news for Katikati and the district. However, NZ First Leader Winston Peters made a similar promise to build the bypass for Katikati if re-elected at the last election, but there is still no bypass - and one is not likely until 2028.
![National's Transport Spokesman Chris Bishop and Coromandel MP Scott Simpson at the Katikati Advertiser office on Friday, looking at a timeline and plan for the bypass.](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/YQ7DFRVJP46SGEVBDYRPBMG4EI.jpg?auth=855e7a3c25b48a2f87900fda51cf576abb5179d44c14bc49e02222b8763cbfb8&width=16&height=19&quality=70&smart=true)