A pothole on State Highway 33 near Paengaroa in September 2022. Photo / Andrew Warner
Bay of Plenty motorists can expect delays across the region’s state highways for the rest of summer due to “unavoidable” works as roading crews play catch-up after wild weather disruptions.
It comes after Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency received 51 pothole-related complaints in the Bay of Plenty between January 1 and October 7 last year.
In total, 214.5 lane kilometres of road across the Bay of Plenty network needed chipseal (184.6 lane km), asphalt (18.7 lane km) and rehab (11.2 lane km) work completed between now and the end of March, according to Waka Kotahi. Some of this work had been completed prior to Christmas, but “significant volumes” of work remained.
A range of construction activities would take place this month as part of the Takitimu North Link Stage One between Te Puna, Bethlehem and Tauriko, as well as further works on the State Highway 2 Bay Link and on the State Highway 29 Takitimu Drive toll road.
Waka Kotahi maintenance and operations regional manager Rob Campbell told the Bay of Plenty Times most of the “really good weather” was over the Christmas break, when they avoided major work to reduce holiday disruptions.
He said Cyclone Hale had more impact on the Coromandel and Gisborne areas, but wet weather throughout summer had put pressure on Waka Kotahi as it caused incidents such as potholes, slips and flooding.
“It takes [crews] away from their core business to not only manage the effect of the incident as it’s happening, but the recovery phase is quite significant.
“The weather’s giving us a bit of a break at the moment. We’re in a position where we can still deliver the vast majority of our programme if we get a window of weather over the rest of the summer. Now, that’s a big ‘if’... none of us can control that.”
Tauranga was the wettest of New Zealand’s six major centres last year according to Niwa, recording 1812 millimetres of rain - 152 per cent above normal levels.
Campbell thought crews were in an “okay” position to finish all works, but that would mean more delays on the roads: “It’s unavoidable.”
“If we don’t do this work and compress it up, then we’ll have more problems next winter.
“We’ve all seen social media and the press comments, and it’s a fair comment; there are more potholes than we’ve ever seen on state highways.
“If we don’t get ahead on this program, we run the risk of being the same or even worse, potentially, next winter. There’s going to be a lot of roadworks, [... but] if we don’t do it now, we’ll be facing an issue over the winter, so I think it’s actually positive.”
Waka Kotahi was playing catch-up, and further investment was essential, Campbell said.
In 2021, the Government revealed it was investing $24.3 billion into transport services and infrastructure as part of the National Land Transport Programme (NLTP) 2021-24.
“We need investment to carry on at this level for the next three to six years, and that’s a sort of time-frame for us to bring the network back to us, what the public would expect,” Campbell said.
Future investment would need to come from the NLTP 2024-27 and 2027-30, neither of which had confirmed funding values at this stage. Funding for the 2024-27 period was being worked through currently.
Campbell said in the past couple of years, abuse towards crews had increased, “which is heart-breaking because they’re out there doing exactly what people want to do - fix the road”.
Most confrontations were verbal, but sometimes crews had items thrown at them. However, overwhelmingly, most drivers were “very nice and appreciative”.
Nationally, 555 complaints were made about vehicle damage in the first 10 months of 2022, prompting Ia Ara Aotearoa Transporting New Zealand chief executive Nick Leggett to call on the Government to stop “the blame game” and focus on funding.
“The best way forward for New Zealand is to invest in infrastructure that supports our economy. New projects will help us grow our way out of our recessionary environment.
“Ninety-three per cent of all products in New Zealand are delivered by truck. Doing nothing about the state of our roads will literally bring the domestic economy to a standstill.”
Transport Minister Michael Wood said this summer would be “one of the largest maintenance seasons” undertaken by Waka Kotahi and the Government had “invested significantly” in maintenance and recovery from “extreme events”.
“Through our record-breaking investment in infrastructure, we are investing close to $7 billion in local road and state highway maintenance as part of the NLTP 2021-24, which will see around 7,000 lane kilometres of state highways and 18,000 lane kilometres of local roads renewed.
“Heavy rain and weather events also make repairs extremely challenging, both on state highways and on local roads. Rain can cause temporary fills to blow out, while also creating new potholes and making existing potholes larger.”
⋅ Takitimu North Link Stage One: A range of construction activities will continue between Te Puna, Bethlehem and Tauriko, including Cambridge Rd, Harrison Rd, Wairoa Rd, Minden Rd, Loop Rd and State Highway 2; there are a number of shoulder closures and reduced speed limits. The new Harrison Road alignment will open with new seal and line marking, scheduled for the coming weeks when there is consistent weather.
⋅ SH2 Bay Link: A single, northbound lane closure on SH2, from Exeter St to Concord Ave, is currently scheduled for the night of January 20 to allow fascia panels to be lifted into position on the Bayfair flyover’s northern ramp (the ramp closest to Golf 360). At the same time, works are planned to remove some sheet piling from the work zone adjacent to the underpass.
⋅ SH29 Takitimu Drive Toll Road: A reduced speed limit of 80km/h will be in place while contractor crews are working behind the barriers.
⋅ SH2 15th Avenue: Work has started on the upgrade of the intersection at SH2/15th Ave and Cameron Rd.
⋅ SH2 Tauranga Harbour Bridge (westbound): The Dive Crescent off-ramp will be closed for approximately a week from Sunday to allow bridge maintenance to take place, weather permitting.
⋅ SH2 Tauranga Eastern Link Toll Road (TELTR): Traffic just north of the Kaituna River bridge has three operational lanes. As earthworks continue on the south side of the road, both eastbound lanes are open and normal speed applies. One westbound lane is open while work continues alongside the outer westbound lane. This layout will remain in place until April 2023, including over the holiday period.
⋅ SH2 Tauranga Eastern Link Toll Road (TELTR) Event: The eastbound lanes between Domain Road (Pāpāmoa) and Paengaroa will be closed between 5.30am and 1pm on January 21 as part of the cycle route for the Mount Festival of Multisport.
⋅ SH2 Waihī to Ōmokoroa: Safety improvement works continue at five active sites between Tanners Point Rd to Kauri Point Rd, Rea Rd/Tetley Rd intersection, Lockington Rd/Matahui Rd intersection, Morton Rd intersection and Apata Station Rd to Esdaile Rd. Pavement work to complete the Rea Rd/Tetley Rd roundabout will take place as soon as there is consistent fine weather.
⋅ SH29 Kaimai Range: Road surface repairs will continue this week.
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