New name of Te Puke's stretch of SH2 revealed

Senior reporter, Bay of Plenty Times·Bay of Plenty Times·

26 Apr, 2015 04:54 AM2 mins to read

State Highway 2 at Te Puke has been renamed. Photo/File

State Highway 2 from Papamoa to Paengaroa is to be renamed Te Puke Highway once the $450 million Tauranga Eastern Link opens later this year.

Western Bay Mayor Ross Paterson said the name was chosen because of its clarity and because it was a major road that passed through Te Puke.

The name change was decided unanimously on the same day as the Western Bay District Council opted to largely stick with the existing speed limits on the road - agreeing with the overwhelming public opinion that rural sections of the road should stay at 100km/h.

Mr Paterson said the new name would take effect on the day the Tauranga Eastern Link (TEL) opened to traffic, with the old stretch of highway to revert to the council's ownership.

Wednesday's decision by the council's regulatory hearings committee took less than 10 minutes and was unanimous.

He said the name change went through a public consultation process that threw up a lot of name suggestions, with Te Puke Highway getting a lot of support.

Mr Paterson said retaining the word "highway" in the name was justified, even although the state highway shifted to the TEL, because it would continue to be a busy major road.

The council received 186 submissions on renaming SH2 between Domain Rd and the new TEL/Paengaroa interchange.

Some of the names suggested by the council to stimulate community discussion were divided into the western side of the road from Domain Rd to Te Puke and the eastern side from Te Puke to Paengaroa, such as Long Swamp Rd (west) and Te Kapua Rd (east). The successful name came out of the public submissions process.

Te Puke Economic Development Group managing director Mark Boyle said he was very happy with the decision. It was important that "Te Puke" was included in whatever name was selected because it was about identity and sense of place.

Unsuccessful name suggestions:
- Gold Rd
- Green Rd
- Packhouse Rd
- Jutland Rd
- Old Te Puke Rd
- Te Puke Main Rd
- Goodness Highway