Our Westie correspondent Phil Robinson has been keeping a close eye on construction progress of the magical new greenway along the Whau River:
Firstly, it is exciting to see the project’s new name: originally the Whau West Greenway, then the Whau Coastal Walkway, it’s now officially Te Whau Pathway – great recognition of the wider use the community will get from this beautiful link, whether they walk, skate, jog, or bike.
I’ve been going for a weekly ride on my mountain bike along the Ken Maunder Park and Archibald Park sectors of the path. It has been great having a brief word with the team working on the job and sympathizing with their little challenges. Progress got (literally) bogged down during June but raced ahead during July. These photos are a few weeks old now – and taken in the late afternoon in the middle of winter. It looks even better now.
The Archibald Park pathway is in place: just a couple of bridges to be finished and it will be fully operational. I guess there will be the final fit-out of “accessories” to come, but as a pathway, parts of it are already in use.
Although not visible in these pictures, the surface finish on the path has sections of exposed aggregate to give some life to the surface. I love the way the route has given some great vistas of the river. (I hope these views are not “planted out” as has happened on some other routes I ride on Twin Streams.)
The Ken Maunder Park sector seemed to start slower as the serious work under the bridge was hidden from view. But, at last check, the concrete path along the edge of the riverbank had come out from under the bridge and was rolling westwards, emerging in places from a sea of mud.
I look forward to the official opening in the near future, and encourage people to drop by the Archibald Park sector and take the pathway for a spin.
— Phil Robinson
For more info about Te Whau Pathway, click here to view a map of the planned greenway. Stage One, currently under construction, covers sectors 1, 4, and 8 (the red lines on the map).
Eventually, the path will travel the length of the western bank of the Whau river from the future Te Atatu bus interchange, just north of the motorway, all the way to Olympic Park in New Lynn. (There’s also enthusiastic talk of eventually extending it to the top of Te Atatu Peninsula, and all the way south to the beachfront at Green Bay – wouldn’t that be a wonderful thing!)
Update 5 August 2015: a flyover view of how the pathway will open up the whole of the area. Pretty spectacular!
