![\"Regional](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/4JTQYMF_Media_jfif.jpeg\")
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\nMinister Shane Jones speaking at the roading upgrade opening on Wednesday.
\nPhoto: RNZ \/ Giles Dexter\n<\/p>\n
Regional Development Minister Shane Jones is hailing the completion of upgrades to the road to the Treaty Grounds in time for Waitangi Day this year.<\/p>\n
Haruru Falls Road has been paved with added guardrails, drainage and earthworks thanks to $1.57 million from the Regional Infrastructure Fund and $400,000 from the Far North District Council.<\/p>\n
The upgrade – completed with just days to spare – provides a second paved route to the grounds without the need to go through Paihia.<\/p>\n
Jones attended the opening on Wednesday with iwi leaders, trustees of the Waitangi National Trust, Far North Mayor Moko Tepania and other dignitaries.<\/p>\n
“Anyone familiar with the road will know that it was a dusty, uneven and sometimes treacherous route because it was partially unsealed,” Jones said.<\/p>\n
He revealed an incident with Parliament’s Speaker had been the impetus to get the road upgraded.<\/p>\n
“Last year, Gerry Brownlee, the Speaker of the House, came over the road. And the vehicle, and perhaps a little bit of himself, was covered in dust. He felt given there’s 160,000 plus visitors who come here, that is that the best we could do?”<\/p>\n
Speaking to media after the road’s opening, Jones remarked it was a wonder it had not been done sooner.<\/p>\n
“I think a lot of us in the North probably take for granted how significant the site is, having grown up around the area, and it is a crappy look that coming into Waitangi, you have to sort of battle through a road,” he said.<\/p>\n
“And for a relatively small amount of money, it kind of makes you wonder why we never did it a lot earlier, actually.”<\/p>\n
A further $10.2m from the RIF is helping with upgrades to the grounds themselves, including car parks, toilet blocks, pathway lighting and drainage to protect the Treaty House, due for completion this year.<\/p>\n
“The Waitangi Treaty Grounds are a place for all New Zealanders and where much of our country’s history was shaped. It’s a site of national significance and its importance is evident in the more than 160,000 visitors who head to the grounds each year,” Jones said.<\/p>\n
Chief executive of the Waitangi Treaty Grounds Ben Dalton praised the investment, saying while there was a lot of political “theatre” around the annual commemorations, there were genuine opportunities to meet with people in power and advocate for the region.<\/p>\n
“No one wants a whole region that’s an economic backwater, so you’re going to need the co-operation of the government, the local people, the councils, and the private sector to be able to change that.”<\/p>\n
Upgrading the one-lane bridge into the Treaty Grounds was also on local wishlists, but while the government expected that would come before the 200th anniversary it was not in the immediate pipeline.<\/p>\n
“I used to come jumping off that bridge as a kid, but I dare say there’ll be a lot of other expectations from my colleagues in Parliament as to which bridges should be fixed up before the bridge at Waitangi,” Jones said.<\/p>\n
“It’s a site of manu significance,” added M\u0101ori Development Minister Tama Potaka.<\/p>\n