Firefighter-mayor backs push to fix notorious intersection
Friday, 12 June 2026
Firefighter-mayor Toby Adams has seen “the carnage” at a notorious blackspot on the holiday highway between Auckland and Coromandel and has thrown his weight behind a push to make it safer for motorists.
The State Highway 25 and Hauraki Rd intersection near Thames has seen multiple serious and fatal car crashes over the years and is long overdue for a fix, he said.
“The amount of accidents and deaths that have happened there is a ridiculous amount and we’ve needed to do something for a while.
“We know that money’s tight with the Government at the moment and NZTA but at some point lives have to got to be more than money. Whilst we know that road and infrastructure help keep New Zealand going, so does actually having people alive to do those jobs.”
He’s backing a petition created by nurse and nursing lecturer Fiona Lagae, who called on the Government to improve safety at the corner, suggesting options ranging from a remodelled layout to a roundabout.
Transport Minister Chris Bishop responded, saying “there is currently no funding allocated for further improvements”.
Lagae used NZTA statistics as the basis for her 710 signature petition, which paint a worsening picture.
Three crashes occurred at the intersection in 2017, including one death, one serious and one minor injury. Fast forward to 2024 and the number grew to five, with one death, seven serious injuries and three minor injuries.
Those stats come after NZTA installed an intersection speed zone sign in 2018, with Bishop describing them as 'targeted and effective safety intervention[s]'.
“That might be the case from his perspective but we can see in the data that serious crashes with serious injuries have gone up,” Legae said.
Orongo Corner acts as the main route for summer holidaymakers, seeing approximately 6500 vehicles a day according to Lagae, adding she’s had “quite a few near misses herself”.
It was a sentiment shared by Labour MP and transport spokesperson Tangi Utikere, who read the petition out in Parliament.
“It’s hard to believe road safety is a priority for this Government. Their priorities are all wrong, the minister needs to listen to the community,” he told the Waikato Times.
'They have ignored community calls for lower speed limits and choose to have billions of dollars in a budget hole for roads that won't be built, rather than make improvements to dangerous parts of the road network.“
In response, a NZTA spokesperson said since 2024 there were three recorded crashes; one serious, one minor and one non-injury. The specific amount of injuries were not disclosed.
They added that limited funding in the National Land Transport Programme is the reason behind the unavailability of funding for the intersection but they will “consider any future projects as part of the 2027-2030 NLTP”.
“With the majority of the crashes involving vehicles turning right from Hauraki Road onto State Highway 25, we urge drivers to look both ways twice and be extra vigilant when turning.”
Lagae queried Coromandel MP and ACC minister Scott Simpson about the intersection, claiming he has an “element of interest to actually reduce the cost of any injury to the country, more specifically to this corner”.
When approached by the Waikato Times, Simpson said he is aware of local residents raising the issue and acknowledged “it’s one of several important roading improvements needed”.
“Road safety in the Coromandel is hugely important to me… as we continue to invest in SH25, the Orongo Corner is an area I’d like improved.”