Mr Boult told the Otago Daily Times the council was "categorically" not proposing to abandon the road, and funding for its maintenance would be included in the council’s next 10-year plan.
Kinloch Lodge co-owner John Glover said statements by council infrastructure general manager Peter Hansby at last Thursday’s meeting had been alarming for residents and regular users of the road.
Mr Hansby spoke of two reports on the road. One had the road being abandoned and provided access to Kinloch and the Greenstone Valley by boat, Mr Glover said.
Although Mr Boult’s statement was reassuring, he would not be satisfied about the council’s stance until he saw the reports as he requested. However, Mr Boult said Mr Hansby’s comments related to the possibility of the NZ Transport Agency changing funding regimes. That had implications for "several strategically important but remote roads with low traffic volumes" in the district, and the council would need to consider alternative funding to keep those roads open.
Although the road would always be vulnerable to flooding, council engineers considered options for gradually raising its surface level in places, with work expected to begin in two weeks.
The project was allocated $100,000 in the current financial year.
Meanwhile, surveying would begin later this year to inform planning for raising the road level in other places, he said.Mr Glover said any work to raise the road’s surface level was "better late than never".
"They’re finally doing some long overdue work that we’ve had to work very hard to get action on."
Two-time Queenstown Lakes mayoral candidate Al Angus said the road had deteriorated due to council neglect and "always doing the minimum at the last possible stage".
As natural processes pushed the river closer to the road, it flooded at lower levels than before. It would also become likely to collapse into the river in places unless stopbanks or groynes were built, Mr Angus said.
Routeburn-Kinloch Rd runs for 9km alongside the Dart River delta and is susceptible to flooding. It has closed to all traffic five times in the past year, and more for two-wheel-drive vehicles in that period.
