Great initiative, as much as I love the fun current road, this has always represented a risk, and providing resilience here will help grow the region - and hopefully lead to SH2 bypassing every town on its way North. I think it could be a missed opportunity however not to also include public transport augmentation/enhancement/resilience to reduce our reliance on private passenger vehicles as well as truck-based freight, as well as a plan for or promotion of active modes (cycling, walking) - especially if you want Waka Kotahi to take this on, as they have been tasked to include these factors in generating their business cases.

If you're focusing on improving resilience and growing Wairarapa's GDP, tourism etc. then it has to be about more than focussing on cars. A lot of people use the trains (and if they must: buses) over the hill, and there's a lot of trucks that could surely be replaced by more frequent trains. There are also great opportunities to expand the current cycling options, imagine if we could crank up a 'tour de Southland' style race using the "old road" and some of our other amazing local roads? Not to mention the environmental benefit