If you haven't been out to the Tauranga Eastern Link (TEL) information centre during the summer Saturday opening days then this is your last chance to see the latest construction footage, images and other displays on the Bay's largest roading construction project.
The Saturday opening is a opportunity for families, groups and interested people to see the impressive displays of what the new State Highway 2 road from Te Maunga to Paengaroa will look like when it opens in 2016.
"There is quite a bit to see out there, including a model of the Domain Road interchange which is taking shape right now, and a time lapse video of the Kaituna River bridge construction”, says NZTA’s Bay of Plenty state highways manager Brett Gliddon.
The Saturday weekend openings have been held the first time this summer following high public interest in the project and requests from those who work during the week to visit the centre on the weekends.
This will be the last of the TEL Information Centre’s Saturday openings for this summer. The information centre will still maintain its normal opening hours during the weekdays which are from Monday to Friday 8.30am to 4.30pm.
The Tauranga Eastern Link information centre, is located at 65 Tara Road, Papamoa, and this Saturday’s opening will be from 10.00am to 1.00pm, parking is available outside the centre.
Keep up-to-date with developments at www.nzta.govt.nz/tel
The four-lane Tauranga Eastern Link will run from Te Maunga (near Baypark Stadium) in Tauranga to the existing junction of State Highways 2 and 33 (the Rotorua and Whakatane highways) near Paengaroa. It will be made up of 17km of new road and an upgrade of six kilometres of existing highway. The new highway is expected to open to traffic in 2016.
The Government has identified seven essential state highway projects linked to New Zealand’s economic prosperity. Called the roads of national significance(external link), or RoNS for short, the NZTA is charged with delivering this programme of state highway improvements within the next 10 years. The RoNS programme represents one of New Zealand’s biggest ever infrastructure investments and is a key part of the Government’s National Infrastructure Plan and Government’s Policy Statement for transport.
The seven RoNS projects are based around New Zealand's five largest population centres. The focus is on moving people and freight between and within these centres more safely and efficiently. Other RoNS may be added in future but currently from north to south the seven projects are:
More information is available at www.nzta.govt.nz/rons
