Several weather-damaged Western Bay roads have been given a funding boost after being allocated $820,000 from the Government’s Cyclone Recovery Capability Fund.

The funding will help progress remediation work on a number of roads damaged during severe weather events in January and February last year, including Kaiate Falls Rd, Ngamuwahine Rd, No 3 Road, Oropi Rd, Te Puke Quarry Rd and Turner Rd.

The funding covers geotechnical engineering ($485,000), planning ($200,000), and stormwater analysis and design ($135,000).

“We are already working on a number of roads that suffered damage in the same weather events, but this means we can now progress more sites,” said Western Bay of Plenty District Council transportation project engineer Sam Prendergast.

“Getting the funding will enable us to engage the necessary professional services and progress these designs in parallel with the other sites.”

Council emergency management team lead Jo Lynskey said the funding is “great news”.

“Our communities, in particular the primary sector, depend on a reliable and resilient road network.

“Support from Government for increasing capability for technical expertise and additional specialist skills to deliver these projects sooner than planned means we can speed up the resilience of our communities.”

The Cyclone Recovery Capability Fund was announced as part of Budget 2024 and was distributed to 12 councils, for 50 initiatives, to support recovery efforts following the severe weather events of 2023.

-Te Puke Times