One-lane Pepe Bridge in Tairua only fit for cars

The one-lane Pepe Bridge in Tairua on a recent quiet summer's evening. Photo / Alison Smith

Coromandel MP Scott Simpson has condemned the New Zealand Transport Authority over what he says is the agency's failure to keep road users advised on the safety risks of Tairua's ageing Pepe Bridge.

However NZTA says it has been managing community expectations around timing of replacement for the structure, and at no time has safety been compromised.

A report released under the Official Information Act shows the one-lane Pepe Bridge on SH25 was assessed in September 2018 with NZTA engineers deeming the bridge as not being strong enough to safely take HPMV vehicles.

It said a six-monthly inspection regime was needed.

"NZTA implemented that six-monthly reporting programme but details were not made public," says Simpson.

"Official Information Act applications for copies of those reports from NZTA have produced information highlighting safety concerns around the structural integrity of the bridge.

"Naturally I'm concerned that this information has not previously been made public by NZTA and that they have had these reports going back several years."

The Tairua Residents and Ratepayers Association, which obtained the report, has stepped up campaigning for a replacement.

They say the bridge is a vital link in the Coromandel's roading network and will have major impacts on local industry if it is not urgently replaced.

The TRRA committee took it upon itself to organise a meeting with stakeholders scheduled for April in the hopes of speeding up replacement.

The cost to replace the bridge with a like-for-like structure is $2.04 million, according to the report.

"This is a Coromandel issue, it's not a local issue," says Jean McCann, chairwoman of the TRRA. "It not only affects the individual town of Tairua but all the businesses on the Coromandel."

Mr Simpson said he believed the bridge is not fit for purpose.

"For years they've been telling us it's structurally sound - clearly they've known for some time. I think it's appalling that they've done that.

"They've been stonewalling for years, it's only when it's been eked out of them that the bridge is structurally unsound that they are finally doing something."

Scott Simpson.

An NZTA spokesperson said HPMV vehicles were mostly travelling between Auckland and port destinations such as Tauranga, with companies that operate on the Coromandel aware of any limitations in place.

Megan Heffield, NZTA spokeswoman, said a business case was for completion in the middle of this year and, until then, funding had not been secured for replacement of the Pepe Bridge.

However, temporary work had been done to tidy it and address any falling concrete from railings. Maintenance would continue, as was the case for all bridges in the network.

"The Government's priorities keep changing so it's not 100 per cent but it's up there for our personal priorities for the Waikato," she said.

Among points under review in the business case was whether to replace the bridge with a two-lane rather than one-lane.

Bridge posting limits applied to the Pepe Bridge which meant it was identified as having reduced capacity. It was notified by way of a putting up posting signs of specific format, gazetting annually and a public notice. Vehicles heavier are not legally allowed to cross, and the fines can be substantial.

Certain overweight classes are permitted by special permits.

Jean said the group had been following the state of the bridge and campaigning for improvements since 2018.

"We asked under the OIA for these reports so we could continually write [informed] letters and our last letter was in February. We've been working on this very hard."

Jean McCann of Tairua Residents and Ratepayers on the delapidated Pepe Bridge in Tairua. Photo / Alison Smith

At New Year, members of the association distributed 400 information pamphlets to road users queued at the bridge, which is a bottleneck causing long delays for holiday traffic.

Mr Simpson said he was concerned at the timeframes on releasing information around the structural integrity of the bridge.

"Naturally I'm concerned that this information has not previously been made public by NZTA and that they have had these reports going back several years."

NZTA Waikato System Manager Cara Lauder said information had been made available on request and sometimes there was nothing new to share.

"We try to provide the information as best we can. Members of the community are always welcome to approach us with questions if they want to know what's going on. We're not trying to keep anything out of the public domain."

She said it had helped to have input and lobbying from the community. "It does help to have community support and noise even though they might feel like they're complaining."