Source: Auckland Council
Auckland Council is reminding off-road drivers that vehicle access to Te Oneone Rangatira / Muriwai beach will be restricted during Guy Fawkes this year.
Coast Road access to Muriwai beach, north of the Muriwai golf course, will remain closed from Saturday 2 November through to Monday 11 November.
Councillor Josephine Bartley, who chairs the Regulatory and Safety Committee, says the increased risk of fire during this time must be mitigated to protect Muriwai Regional Park and the surrounding environment.
“There are serious concerns about the potential threat from fire associated with fireworks along isolated stretches of Muriwai’s 60-kilometre coastline. We will continue to manage that risk by limiting vehicle access during Guy Fawkes, as well as over the New Year,” Cr Bartley says.
Coast Road beach access will again close from 31 December until 13 January, with a possible extension if considered necessary by Fire and Emergency New Zealand.
Cr Bartley reminds all beachgoers that fireworks and fires are not permitted on any Auckland beaches, including along the foreshore.
Regional Park Manager Scott De Silva says the council’s first Guy Fawkes vehicle restriction at Muriwai last year resulted in significantly less stress and demand on Fire and Emergency services, with no fireworks related callouts to the area.
“We know that temporarily limiting access when there is a high fire risk reduces the potential for devastation to occur,” Mr De Silva says.
Signage will be installed this week along access roads to Muriwai and Coast Road to inform drivers of the upcoming gate closure and of vehicles barriers being put in place.
Since 2020, the council has closed Coast Road from late December to early January to limit vehicle movements on the beach, when there is also a high safety risk to people, the environment, and from fire.
Both closures were approved last October to continue through to 2026. Other safety requirements include all recreational off-road drivers to have a current registration, warrant of fitness and acquire a current annual permit for each vehicle in order to drive on Muriwai and Karioitahi beaches.
“As part of this process, we ask you to go over the road rules on beaches and the speed limit variations to ensure you drive appropriately at all times,” says Mr De Silva.
“Both of these wild West Coast landscapes are constantly changing. Driving along the beach requires drivers to apply additional skills and be aware of the potential hazards that can arise at any time,” he says.
Anyone who has concerns about unsafe or dangerous driving on beaches in the meantime should report this to police, by calling *555 or 105 for urgent but non-life threatening situations and 111 when life is at risk.
