Catching a glimpse of progress being made on the Bay of Plenty's largest ever roading project, the Tauranga Eastern Link (TEL), just got easier through a new set of binoculars at the top of the Papamoa Hills Regional Park.

The binoculars were installed thanks to a joint initiative between Bay of Plenty Regional Council and the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA).

Colin Reeder (Nga Potiki) testing out the new binoculars as Matire Duncan (Nga Potiki) and Courtney Bell (Bay of Plenty Regional Council) enjoy the view.

Bay of Plenty state highways manager Brett Gliddon says 17kilometres of the TEL is being constructed generally out of public view making it difficult to see how much work has actually been done. Fortunately the outlook from the Papamoa Hills provides the public the opportunity to see just how much progress has been made on the road of national significance.

'The view from the Papamoa Hills looks out to Papamoa and towards Paengaroa, which covers the majority of the new 23 kilometre State Highway 2 which opens in 2016.”

Access to the binoculars is possible via a walking track from the Papamoa Hills Regional Park car park to the summit. It takes 45 minutes to reach the summit, and the track rises steeply through a pine forest up to the open ridge. The binoculars are located on the ridge between the trig at the summit and the big pine trees on Patakitahi which is in the northern corner of the park.

Brett says the NZTA wanted to find a way to bring the Bay of Plenty community along the construction journey and installing the binoculars is all part of this by providing a good vantage point to view progress.

'The Papamoa Hills offer spectacular views of the landscape and coastline, including a good portion of the Tauranga Eastern Link, something quite unique for this project.

'Since construction started two years ago there has been a considerable amount of work done, with more still to come over the next four.”

Regional Council Land Management Manager – Western Robyn Skelton says Papamoa Hills park was highly valued, and the binoculars would allow visitors to enjoy the scenery.

'We have great support from our Advisory Committee, working with Ngati Pukenga, Ngati He, Nga Potiki and Waitaha, as well as the New Zealand Historic Places Trust in developing the park.

'We're looking forward to a great summer and have been busy this last year with planting, as well as track maintenance,” she said.

To keep up to date with progress go to the Tauranga Eastern Link project website at www.nzta.govt.nz/tel.

To find out how to get to the Papamoa Hills Regional Park visit http://www.boprc.govt.nz/discover-our-region/regional-parks/papamoa-hills-regional-park/