Waihī to get new pedestrian island without NZTA’s help

Thursday, 9 July 2026

The road between Morgan Park and Waihī Rugby Club is notoriously dangerous to cross, with big trucks constantly steaming through.

After years of people “running the gauntlet” between Waihī Rugby Club and a nearby park there’s no national funding on the horizon for a fix, so the council’s shelling out instead.

A pedestrian refuge island is set to be installed between the club and Morgan Park, but the entire $126,000 expense will land on ratepayers.

The island creates a resting point for those crossing State Highway 25 on a stretch of road used by about 3700 vehicles a day, a Hauraki District Council agenda read. About 12.5% of that is heavy traffic.

‘We’re going to look back and go, ‘why didn’t we do this sooner?’’ Hauraki Mayor Toby Adams said.

The infrastructure should have been funded by NZTA, Hauraki Mayor Toby Adams said, but the council decided to “bite the bullet and use our own funds to protect our own people”.

“They’ve [NZTA] got limited budgets as well and they’ve got to prioritise where their money is and maybe they don’t see this as a priority but our community does.”

The road crossing is only set to become busier as nearby sports services grow.

“We get this is probably no different than Orongo Corner… I can understand where they’re at.”

However, events at either the rugby club or Morgan Park brought so much traffic that “you’re running the gauntlet to get across a busy stretch of highway”.

Because the road is a highway NZTA is the road controlling authority, a Hauraki District Council agenda said.

However, an NZTA spokesperson told the Waikato Times there was limited funding in the National Land Transport Fund and the priority was “the maintenance and renewal of existing cycleways and footpaths”.

The current design layout for the pedestrian island.

The crossing has been on the mayor’s radar for nearly 20 years after seeing his own kids cross the road.

“This is actually a moment in time where we’re going to look back and go, ‘why didn’t we do this sooner?’” Adams said.

The cost for the project totalled $86,000 when the council first approved installation in September last year.

Waihī Ward Councillor Austin Rattray knows well the dangers crossing the road holds.

Further work on the location of the crossing increased the cost, council staff said. The new price tag allows for “consultation with NZTA, further design works, project management and construction of the pedestrian crossing”, according to the agenda.

The location is “the best possible” and keeps open the option for a full pedestrian crossing, services delivery group manager Adrian de Laborde said.

The report was passed unanimously, garnering support from many councillors.

Waihī general ward councillor Austin Rattray described the road as “an accident waiting to happen”. He added he was “surprised” there hadn’t been an incident in the last few years given the foot traffic, especially with the developments at Morgan Park.

“Our rugby club is so full across the weekend and even on Fridays. In Morgan Park you’ve got squash, you’ve got the pump track,” Councillor Amanda Ryan added. “There’s a lot of users using our sports.”

Half of the funding is set to come from the Waihī Ward Discretionary fund, with the remaining 30% and 20% funded through the District Discretionary Fund and council’s Access and Mobility budget.

Once finalised, the council agenda read NZTA has “indicated support” for the project, with the spokesperson adding the organisation will “review the design of the pedestrian refuge island and must approve any works on a state highway”.

The island is set to be completed March 2027 pending NZTA approval in September.