Tararua District residents, including Mayor Tracey Collis marched to protest against the proposed toll on Te Ahu a Turanga Manawatū-Tararua Highway. Video / Hawkes Bay Today
Chants of “Bowl the toll”, “NZTA we won’t pay” and “Toll-Free Tararua” filled the main street of Woodville as residents marched to protest a proposal to toll Te Ahu a Turanga: Manawatū-Tararua Highway.
The hīkoi, organised by Vicky Tomlinson of community group Positively Woodville, started at Fountaine Square and ended along what was once State Highway 3, leading into the Manawatū Gorge, where people could see the Woodville end of the construction project which began in January 2021 and is expected to be completed by mid-2025.
The protest hīkoi, led by Tararua District Mayor Tracey Collis and councillor Scott Gilmore, along SH 2 in Woodville.
Tararua District Mayor Tracey Collis spoke at the protest saying the proposed toll would create “unacceptable” economic and social barriers.
“We’re here today because this is wrong, and we’re here today because we stand by what we lost here.”
Collis said locals had sacrificed land to make the road, a replacement for the Manawatū Gorge road, possible.
“Our farmers sacrificed land because it was right for our district, for the region, and for our nation, our iwi sacrificed the Ruahine range, Parahaki Island.
“And they did that because it was good for our people. It was good for our region, and it was good for the nation.”
She said if the toll had been talked about at any stage of the process, they would have said no and August 29 was the first they’d ever heard that people would have to pay.
Under the terms for tolling a road, there would have to be feasible alternatives to the tolled road which would be the Saddle Rd and Pahiatua Track.
“Feasible doesn’t mean safe. It just means you can barely try to drive on [it].”
Collis said people’s safety mattered, and as far as many were concerned, those alternate roads were not safe.
As part of the process, for a toll to go ahead, it would need community support and regional support.
“Well, I’ve got news for you. NZTA, Ruapehu, Rangitīkei, Whanganui, Manawatū, Palmerston North, Horowhenua, Tararua District, Horizons Regional Council, Masterton, Carterton, South Wairarapa, Central Hawke’s Bay, Hastings, Napier, they don’t support this toll. They support toll-free Tararua.”
Collis said it was a disgrace.
“As I stand here, I go back to the beginning. To what we were promised. A safe and resilient highway reconnecting east to west. The highway that would unlock the economic potential of our region.
“The highway that was imagined, designed … for everyone and it was always meant to be free.”
She said she hadn’t given up hope because the road was built “with many people paddling in the same waka, working together for a common goal”.
The march ended at the intersection of Napier Rd and Woodlands Rd, Woodville. The Woodville end of the new highway is still a work in progress.
Mavis Mullins, chairwoman for Rangitāne o Tamaki nui-a-Rua, said she had thousands of “tupuna who are saying, ‘No, this is not right’.
“Isn’t it awful when money becomes more important than people?”
Mullins acknowledged those who had travelled from Ashhurst, Palmerston North and Feilding or as far away as Wairarapa and Central Hawke’s Bay to provide support.
“As Rangitane, we stand very firmly with Tararua District Council and all of us, Horizon Regional Council, as we move towards ensuring that this is a toll-free Tararua.”
Palmerston North city councillor Brent Barrett also spoke on his support and the close relationship between Palmerston North and Tararua District.
“We are connected by the Manawatū awa. We’re close in distance, and we’re closer in relationships, in connection in whanau, in friendships, in community, in education, in health, employment and every dimension of life.”
In a recent meeting, the council had voted unanimously to keep the highway toll-free.
Barrett said the messages sent a strong signal to the minister that he did not enjoy their support and that he was “on a path to earning our wrath and to losing our trust”.
“Tolling the road is nothing short of the minister picking our pockets. It’s broken promises, it’s divided communities, it’s dangerous roads, it’s lost lives and it’s diminished livelihoods.
“Tolling would twist a source of pride, a source of connection, into one of disappointment, danger, division and disconnection.”
Submissions closed early last week and would be summarised and a recommendation on the proposal would be made to Minister of Transport Simeon Brown, with the final decision resting with Cabinet.
Collis said her next step would be to meet with the board of the NZTA to state the district’s case.
Brown was adamant the project was not just a replacement road, it was also a major upgrade.
“This new road is being built with two lanes in each direction making it a four-lane grade-separated expressway between Manawatū and Tararua [District].”
He said the expressway would have significant travel time and safety benefits for those who used it and it would be far more reliable and fuel efficient than the alternative routes, expecting to save between 12 and 14 minutes of travel time.
“The benefits of this project will particularly be felt by freight operators who will save time, benefit from greater fuel efficiency, and see reduced maintenance costs due to having a modern, reliable road.
“For motorists who don’t want to pay the proposed toll, there will be two free routes available. Maintenance on both of these routes has been undertaken by NZTA since the Manawatū Gorge Rd was closed due to slips.”
Brown said the project had a $200 million blowout in cost under the previous government and tolling was one way to recover that cost and contribute to ongoing maintenance.
“The Government has set a very clear expectation that for new and upgraded infrastructure where there are significant benefits to motorists, tolling should be considered as a way of covering the cost.“
