Letters to the editor: Trial car pool lanes in Welcome Bay and Mount Maunganui

Temporary Hairini St closure. Photo/file

Trial T2 lanes

In regards to Hairini St: It does seem like the council and NZTA will stick to their guns on this. May I suggest a compromise?

Make Hairini St a T2-plus street as well as bus lane and, while they're at it, also turn Hewletts Rd's bus lane into a T2-plus lane.

It will be a good incentive for more people in fewer cars on our roads.

In my mind a very simple solution with positive results.

Hey with a trial, the trial can be reversed. Te Puna Station Rd has been through this.

My thoughts, I see that as a simple solution. Let's put it into place Tauranga City Council and NZTA, give it a month.

Daryl Hone
Te Puna

Superpole legacy

From 1996 to 2014, one week before each Government election, the then National MP for the Bay of Plenty electorate, Tony Ryall, would meet residents at the Te Hono St, All Saints Anglican Church.

He knew the area well and had been elected and supported by the people of the Bay of Plenty over this period.

As an ex-MP, Winston Peters's legacy to Tauranga was the harbour bridge.

The legacy of Tony Ryall, now chairman of Transpower, will be two "superpole" erections either side of Rangataua Bay estuary.

Is this his way of saying "Thank you"?

Craig Malpas
Maungatapu

Centre-right panic

There seems to be a growing centre-right voter panic in New Zealand. With the National Party having essentially mirrored the posturing and policy of the Labour Party over recent years, the centre-right voter is becoming bereft of options.

However, this deficit of choice is entirely self-induced.

With the brief exception of the now-defunct United Future Party, whenever a new right-of-centre political vehicle has raised its head on the political spectrum, centre-right voters have talked change, but then voted status quo.

In my opinion, the reality is the average centre-right voter is a self-interested political coward, and it is this self-interested cowardice that has resulted in the centre-left now dominating the political landscape, both now, and in all likelihood, for some time to come.

For a centre-right voter to now expect any other future outcome as a result of historical voting choices made, is in my view, simply an exercise in juvenile hubris.

Dylan Tipene
Ranui