The Waitaki District Council wants the Government to help repair erosion threatening coastal roads.
Councillors yesterday recommended proposed emergency works on Waianakarua Rd, south of All Day Bay, proceed so the southbound lane could be reopened.
They also recommended the council ask the Government to find a long-term funding solution for coastal erosion.
Erosion is also a problem on Beach Rd, between Oamaru and Kakanui.
Emergency work is needed on a 45 metre stretch of Waianakarua Rd to reopen the road back to two full lanes.
The cost is estimated at $300,000, with the work requiring a mixture of gabion baskets and rock protection.
The project relied on a 67% subsidy from the New Zealand Transport Agency, while the council's share would total $100,000.
A survey showed 71% of affected landowners on Waianakarua Rd wanted the erosion repaired to keep the road open.
Cr Peter Twiss believed the work was "very urgent".
Already one lane was closed and, if there was a heavy storm, it might be two.
Waitaki Mayor Alex Familton asked councillors to ask themselves how different the situation was to Beach Rd, where part of the road, between Gardners and Thousand Acre Rds was temporarily closed.
There were roads at Waianakarua leading from the coast to State Highway 1.
Residents to the north would be minimally affected, while there was not a big population to the south and they had very good access to the main road.
Potentially, this was a stretch of road which would provide difficulties for the council in the future.
Mr Familton said he did not believe the council had an obligation to "put a loop in" to be used as a bypass in case there were accidents on nearby State Highway 1 - that was the NZTA's job.
However, Cr Twiss said the Waianakarua Rd problem was different to Beach Rd - while Beach Rd was closed, there was another road running parallel not far away.
However, at Waianakarua, a diversion would be "quite a detour".
