Whakatāne District Council is in the final stages of investigating options to repair the damaged section of the Ngā Tapuwae o Toi walkway between Ōhope’s West End and Ōtarawairere Bay.

Manager of open spaces operations Ian Malony said a landslide risk assessment was underway to determine the safest approach for repair.

“While this work progresses, timelines remain uncertain as additional funding will need to be secured for any approved solution,” he said.

“We understand the community’s eagerness to see the track reopened and we’ll provide updates as soon as more information becomes available.”

The track has been unusable since heavy rainfall two years ago caused a large slip.

Early hopes were for the track to be back in full use by the middle of last year.

The council was then hit with a much larger than expected estimate for how much the repair would cost. It sought and was approved funding through the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.

Earlier this year two people were photographed walking along a perilous stretch of the former walkway.