WAITAKERE HIGHWAY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIII, Issue 227, 24 September 1932, Page 7

WAITAKERE HIGHWAY.

PROPOSAL FOR RIDGE ROAD. TITIRANGI AND WAITAKERES. WORK FOR UNEMPLOYED. Many people have wondered why the Waitakere hills, the only high land on the isthmus of Auckland, are not used by the citizens. More progressive people would have made the eastern side of the range a suburb by this time,_ but even to-day these magnificent heights are only accessible in patches. One can cross them in two places, the best known being the Glen Eden-West Coast Road, which goes through Nihotupu. The other is the Henderson-West Coast i Road. At the extreme north end, where the range finishee in the peak called Pukematakeo, there is also access by a foot track from the Swanson-West Coast Eoad. At Nihotupu there is a short stretch of ridge road towards the south, and a slightly longer stretch towards the north, at tne end of which a track leads to the trig, on Rua-o-te-Whenua, the highest point of the hills, about 1400 ft above sea level. From the Henderson-West Coast Road there is an indifferent sort of road running north along the ridge, but it ends abruptly about half a mile before Pukematakeo ie readied. Conference Called. In order to consider the. question of a ridge road along the whole length of the Waitakere hills, and also along the part of the Titirangi hills that is not loaded, Mr. W. A. Bishop, chairman of the Waitemata County Council, has called a conference for October 3 of members of Parliament and interested parties to see if the unemployed cannot be used to make such a thoroughfare. At tlie Titirangi end there ia a road running along the ridge from the Titirangi concrete highway, but it does not go more than a mile or eo, to the estate called "Kaurilands," which was recently subdivided. A ridge road that would link up the Titirangi hills and the Waitakeres and give a magnificent drive from the Titirangi concrete highway rlgnt along to the Swanson-West Coast Road, although not a necessity, would be a valuable asset to Auckland, and many people think it would be better to use the relief workers in making such a road than in doing other work not permanent in nature. This proposed ridge road would give a wonderful drive with a distance, Auckland to Auckland, of about 40 miles. It is estimated that 400 men could be employed on the work.