The letter ‘Wasted Money' (The Weekend Sun, September 13, pg 40) points to a city council that is totally out of control when it comes to spending our ratepayers $$$. Trying to ‘fix' the track around The Mount is another example: $750 k so far and we've got a set of stairs.

From where I'm sitting, the consultants and contractors used by this city council need reigning in big time. And by the way, if every decision has to be referred to a consultant, then please explain to me why we need councillors? I can understand that you do need professional advice, like a geotechnical report, but it seems to me that far too often it is just too easy to delay the solution to a problem either further by appointing a consultant.

Council produced two estimates to build the Memorial Park to The Strand cycle-walkway: A concrete path version at $20 mil, and a boardwalk version at $14 mil, for 900m of pathway.

What? The TEL cost around $14 mil per km, when you remove the bridges and roundabouts, and that is a 4-lane highway that you can drive 50 ton trucks across, built in a swamp.

Council has not supported either option, but have agreed to a $400k business case study instead. More money for consultants.

I suggest people think twice when voting in this round of local body elections. We need new blood who are prepared to go back to first principles, and can challenge some of the thinking going on.

Otherwise we are going to get nowhere fast. I support cycling as a viable transport solution, but if this is what it is going to cost, we need to seriously look at our priorities and how we do it.

Jan Booysen, Chairman, BOP Community Trails Trust.