Cars using off-limits cycle trail

The cycleway between Opua and Kawakawa is being used by cars, like this one on Saturday, after an access gate and boulders were removed. Photo / Supplied

Part of the Twin Coast Cycle Trail is being used by motorists after an access gate was sawn off.

Cyclists riding a 500m section of trail between Opua and Kawakawa are having to dodge cars after locals cut through a heavy steel gate and removed boulders. Motorists are getting onto the trail from State Highway 11 opposite Opua's industrial park.

The Far North District Council covered the railway line with gravel earlier this year so it could be used as part of its coast-to-coast cycleway. It is just wide enough for a small car.

The motorists appear to be mainly recreational fishers reluctant to walk 500m from the highway, but the dilemma facing the council is that the trail is also used by a family without suitable road access to get a sick child to medical appointments.

Council spokesman Richard Edmondson the poor state of Te Raupo Rd, a private road near Rigden Rd, meant some residents and fishers had been driving on the cycle trail. Vehicle access had been blocked by a gate and boulders but they had been removed.

One of the solutions considered was to replace the gate, give the family with the sick child a key, and ask police to keep an eye on the area.

Another option was to install barriers which could not be removed without heavy machinery. That, however, would have affected the family of the sick child and prevented access by emergency services.

In the end the council decided to spend $94,000 upgrading a 2km section of Te Raupo Rd. Because it was effectively a private road, ongoing maintenance would remain the residents' responsibility.

The locked gates would be reinstated with the sick child's family given a key until Te Raupo Rd had been fixed, Mr Edmondson said.

"The dilemma for residents is the condition of Te Raupo Rd. The dilemma for the council is the obvious conflict between vehicles and cyclists."

The Kawakawa-Opua railway corridor is leased to the Bay of Islands Vintage Railway Trust, which has leased it to the council until trains can run all the way to Opua.

It is currently closed about the halfway mark by fallen trees and slips triggered by July's storm.