I am livid absolutely livid because we, the council, the residents and the Transport Agency and their safety engineer Adam Francis have worked closely together to plan and achieve the upgrading of a very serious safety issue at the intersection of Belk Rd. The planning, the property purchases, the consultation, everything is ready for the work to be done before Christmas. Then along comes the regional council, and because a metre is to be added to the existing culvert the regional council at this late stage is insisting that a full catchment study be done at a cost of $70,000 which will delay the upgrade until next year.

Sometimes it is extremely frustrating representing people and finding that obstacles are put in the way which seem so mean and unhelpful. The sooner Western Bay and Tauranga become a unitary authority the better, instead of this tripping over each other which is happening too often. We are supposed to be working together, but it requires a willingness on the part of all the authorities and I am sorry to say I believe the regional council has got to improve its performance.

M Murray-Benge, Bethlehem.

Bay of Plenty Regional Council consents manager Reuben Fraser replies:

We have a good relationship with NZTA, are very supportive of the project and have not imposed any undue delays. Regional Council has a duty of care and is legally required to ensure the design is fit for purpose and meets Regional Water and Land Plan requirements.

There is a standard procedure around culvert extensions, and as part of this process in August we requested some basic further information from NZTA. At the end of the day, we need to ensure that if this area were to flood the culvert would stand up to the conditions and potential run-off would not affect those residing downstream. NZTA's engineers are working on the request and we are expecting the information soon. Once received we will be able to progress the application. NZTA have informed us current estimates for the entire consenting process (preparation of the application, our processing costs etc.) are closer to $30,000 (not $70,000). The request for further information was not a full catchment study but instead an assessment that would help ensure the culverts are consistent with council's Hydrological and Hydraulic Guidelines. We anticipate this engineering component will take two to four hours.