December 02, 2019
Taipa bridge offers road to past
The far north is celebrating the opening of a new two-lane bridge at Taipa.
The $19 million bridge will not only speed the passage of tour busses to Ninety Mile Beach and Cape Reinga but it will put locals on the information superhighway – the Smart Cities street lights positioned at both ends of the road adjacent to the bridge also come with a hub giving the community free access to wifi.
Te Rarawa chair Haami Piripi says tauihu or prow and taurapa or stern panels at each end are a reminder of the place of Taipa in Māori history.
“That awa is where the Mamaru waka arrived. We’ve still got the landing spot. We’re still describing the events of the landing, the sighting of a large shark, and the settlement of Parata who was the leader of that waka and his marriage to Kahutianui who was our ancestress in waiting so from them come the Ngāti Kahu iwi,” he says.
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