The Duntroon to Oamaru section of the much-lauded Alps 2 Ocean cycle trail will take cyclists off-road as much as possible, according to the Waitaki District Council.
The 315km trail from Mt Cook to Oamaru is part of the New Zealand Cycle Trail project, and council community services manager Thunes Cloete said the plan was to put the "majority" of the trail off-road.
"The more we can take off-road the better. It is also safer and it is just a better experience."
Two options to take the trail off-road between Waitaki Dam and Kurow were being considered, in order to improve the quality and safety of the Duntroon to Oamaru section, Mr Cloete said. It was necessary to leave the road due to the existence of a sharp corner on State Highway 83 between Waitaki Dam and Kurow.
"That corner we have there, means we have got to get off the road; it's just too dangerous.
There is also about another 400m just after Waitaki Dam; we will have to get off there as well."
He said one option would be to skirt around the Waitaki River, but an option to take the trail further inland was also being considered.
Approval was still needed from some landowners before any work could start on the off-road sections, but the response so far had been positive.
"We have talked to some landowners and they are quite happy."
To date, 32km of the 315km trail has been completed, with sections between Mt Cook to Station Rd, Hayman Rd to Pukaki Dam, Pukaki to Pukaki Flats, and from Pukaki Flats to Twizel, all complete. Mr Cloete said the Duntroon to Oamaru section would be complete within a month.
However, the trail could still be added to after opening, he said.
"The idea is that we want to open it around December, but within the next five years we would like to get more of it off-road."
The council would ensure that there was "excellent" signage on both on-road and off-road sections to make the trail as safe as possible for cyclists, he added.
