Andrew Dickens Afternoons

LISTEN ABOVE AS CAMPAIGN SPOKESMAN MATTHEW FARRELL SPEAKS TO ANDREW DICKENSNo roads, no growth: that's the message both State Highway 2 campaigners and Western Bay councils are looking to send to the Government.Following its protest blockade of the highway on Sunday, the Fix the Bloody Road campaign has launched a petition to stop more housing being built in communities such as Ōmokoroa until the road is upgraded.The petition, addressed to SmartGrowth - a collaboration of Western Bay councils and other groups - already had more than 300 signatures.Campaign spokesman Matthew Farrell said SmartGrowth predicted another 43,000 homes were needed to house a population increase of 250,000 in Tauranga and Western Bay of Plenty in the next three decades.State Highway 2 was already well over capacity, he said."Given we are getting these major congestion problems and safety issues, it would make sense to hold off until the infrastructure has caught up," he said."We will keep doing what we need to do until we get some co