D Dawson

While travelling from Awakeri to Ōpōtiki to the car and bike show on February 21, I could not believe the state the road was in.

Firstl, the Pekatahi Bridge was in a state of disrepair, worse than I have ever seen it and dangerous for bikes and cars to cross safely with its uneven surface, with holes in the timber planks and large screws protruding above the surface that could damage tyres and cause people to lose control.

Further on, there was an area where the road is slipping into the Waimana River and has two road marker cones placed on the road to stop vehicles driving into the river.

Then, while travelling through Waimana and Nukuhou, I encountered at least three areas where the centre of the road had a raised uneven surface, high enough to send a car or motorbike out of control.

When approaching Waiotahe, there was a patch of road works where the sealed surface met the metal surface with a sharp vertical drop of about one foot deep enough to do considerable damage to cars and motorbikes.

Later on, it had been filled with metal.

I thought with all the money we pay in petrol tax and road user charges and registrations, there would be plenty of money for road maintenance, or is it that our roading contractors are not doing their job?