Work is complete on stablising and reinforcing the rock face above State Highway 30 at Lake Rotoiti.
An early morning blessing ceremony conducted by local kaumatua was held on site yesterday to acknowledge completion of the project.
The road at Ruato Bay has been reduced to a single lane for the past 17 months after a rockfall in August 2012. A rock face reconstruction and stabilisation project was managed by Rotorua District Council for the NZ Transport Agency, who funded the work at a cost of about $4 million.
"Designing an engineering solution and carrying out the actual works has been time consuming and very challenging at times," highways manager for the Transport Agency Brett Giddon said.
"The physical location, the discovery of some unexpected fissures in the rock face and the need to keep the state highway open contributed to the complex nature of this project.
"Our main contractors, HEB Contractors and Ancorloc, have done a good job in minimising traffic disruption, while carrying out over 20,000 hours of work on the site safely and professionally.
"We're grateful to a supportive local community, iwi and to motorists and the travelling public for their understanding, patience and co-operation over the last 17 months," said Mr Gliddon.
He said both lanes would be re-opened fully this week once contractors moved off-site.
Rotorua mayor Steve Chadwick said the project was an excellent example of a collaborative partnership between two public organisations with strong support and co-operation from iwi and the local community.
"I expect that this will be the way that many similar projects are carried out in the future - pooling our resources and expertise to get the best possible outcomes for our residents and for travellers," Mrs Chadwick said.