Also the stretch of new, wide, almost straight road from Te Waerenga Rd to Unsworth Rd which has been changed from 100km/h to 80km/h for absolutely no practical reason.
Now you can quite fairly say, just get over it, it is no big deal, a few extra minutes on to your journey but I think there is a more important thing at stake here.
It is freedom from silly, petty, unreasonable rules usually purported to be about safety.
There is a danger in our society's fixation with safety at all costs.
The world is a dangerous place and we need to learn personal responsibility and risk management rather than excessive regulation.
David Carman
Hamurana
Accuracy missing
Viv Radley's letter on Rotorua temperatures (October 2) triggered my memory back some 75 years when I was a young cadet working in the Tourist Department.
In those days, our office was responsible for the meteorological recordings.
Unfortunately, our recording instruments at the back of the office were under the shadow of a great 90-foot sequoia tree, so consequently we did not always get the most accurate readings.
Even in those days, people living in the more open spaces argued that they suffered more severe frosts than the Tourist Department recorded.
Now, after all these years, it appears we still have not found the ideal spot for true and accurate temperature recordings.
Perhaps at long last, this will be Rotorua's year and then we can re-echo Viv Radley's words and ''give Tauranga a run for its money''.
Things - or should we say temperatures - are about to heat up.
Alf Chote
Rotorua
Days of glamour
I agree with Jim Adams (Letters, September 12).
It would be a sad day if the racecourse was to close.
There was a touch of glamour always with fashion in the field over Christmas and it was always a hit.
There were lots of women and men dressed up, looking dapper.
As a young girl, I would go with my late parents and it was always a day to remember.
I have been to many racecourses throughout the country - for example, Ellerslie, Te Rapa, Cambridge and Tauranga.
It is a shame to say farewell to these days of glamour.
P Fletcher
Rotorua
Earthquake costs
May I suggest that Rotorua Lakes Council contact the Council at Oamaru?
Their quote of $5 million to restore their courthouse after earthquake damage came in completed at around $300,000 after consulting with a heritage body.
We can live and hope.
Glenda Berriman
Rotorua
Leave gardens in peace
The Peace Memorial Gardens are indeed beautiful (Letters, October 4), but it would be inappropriate to commission a statue as a centrepiece.
More blood has been spilled in the name of Christ than any other.
Any self-respecting local artist would be well advised to decline such a commission.
Mike Byrne
Rotorua
