Cabinet has agreed to reinstate the coastal route to Kaikoura and will provide additional funding to speed up the process, Transport Minister Simon Bridges has announced. The existing State Highway 1 and rail corridor along the coastal route to the north and south of Kaikoura will be rebuilt, with additional improvements to increase safety and resilience. “Since the day of the earthquake, restoring access to Kaikoura has been our number one priority. Agreeing to restore the coastal route demonstrates our ongoing commitment to getting this region back on its feet as quickly as possible,” Mr Bridges says. “To provide certainty,…