Murihiku's portable pump track, Tunatuna, official Bluff launch

Active Southland active transport innovator Laura Thompson (left), Southland District Mayor Rob Scott and Cycling Southland major events and pathways manager Glen Thomson were on hand for the ribbon cutting.

About 250 people gathered in Bluff at Tunatuna’s initial location in Lee Street and were the first to try out the modular track before it heads around Southland over the next 12 months.

The 64m-long portable pump track is the result of 12 months of collaborative effort between community organisations, councils and funders.
The goal is to allow communities to activate under-utilised public and green spaces and bring the community together around riding skateboards, scooters, bicycles.

It will also serve as a template for communities to evaluate the potential impact of a pump track in their community.

It is funded by the Transport Choices package, which is part of the Waka Kotahi Climate Emergency Response Fund (CERF) programme, with funding also coming from Community Trust South, the Tū Manawa Active Aotearoa fund administered by Active Southland, ILT Foundation, Invercargill City Council and Southland District Council.

Cycling Southland owns and will maintain the track, with support from the Southland Mountain Bike Club, Southland BMX Club, and the Southland Triathlon and Multisport Club, while Active Southland’s Healthy Families Invercargill active transport innovator is facilitating the initiative.

The track will be based in Bluff for the next two months, before heading to its next location in Nightcaps in September.

Access to the Lee Street site in Bluff is available between 10am and 5pm from Wednesday to Sunday.