A telecommunications company has blocked off a 360° view of the Dunedin from one of its most "iconic" summits and trail runners are saying it is health and safety gone crazy.
Kordia has built a fence that has permanently blocked off access to the summit under the transmission tower on Mt Cargill.
The company is planning to build a pathway to reinstate public access, but the organisers of the 3 Peaks Race are worried it will not be in place before the event on March 15.
Race director Lydia Pattillo said the new fence was annoying for runners and people trying to access the peak of the mountain.
"I get health and safety and all that kind of hoo-ha but there was already fencing around the tower.
"I think they should have probably done a bypass trail first."
A local runner had created a goat trail to access the summit, but it was inaccessible to people with disabilities and a difficult route for the elderly, Mrs Pattillo said.
Last week she saw a bus load of tourists hacking their way through vegetation to get to the 360° vantage point of Dunedin.
Leith Harrier and Athletic Club president Dr Chris Sole said Mt Cargill was iconic the way Mt Roy was to Wanaka.
He was in "absolute shock" when he saw the fence had been cemented in.
"It’s health and safety gone crazy," he said.
"I can’t understand the rationale or reasoning behind it."
A Kordia spokesman said it had been carrying out upgrades at its transmission tower site at Mt Cargill to improve public access and safety.
That included installing the fence at the base of the tower but also building a permanent path for use.
The new fencing would help protect both the transmission equipment and the public from potential hazards, such as falling ice that forms on the tower during winter, he said.
There was also evidence of unauthorised members of the public attempting to climb the tower, a dangerous and illegal activity, the spokesman said, which Kordia hoped the fencing would deter.
Kordia recognised Mt Cargill was a cherished part of the Dunedin community and was working closely with Dunedin City Council to find the right balance between safety and maintaining as much public access as possible while the work was carried out, he said.
It was working with the 3 Peaks organisers and was hoping to have the pathway paved before race day.
"The Mt Cargill site houses critical broadcasting and communications infrastructure that has been keeping people in the South Island safe and connected for more than 60 years.
"It’s crucial that these upgrades are done now, to ensure many more years of resilience for local communities.
"We trust that Dunedin locals will enjoy using the new path."
