Traffic woes are concerning residents who say it takes an hour to travel five kilometres. Photo / Supplied
Traffic woes are concerning residents who say it takes an hour to travel five kilometres. Photo / Supplied
Commuters say a stretch of State Highway 2 between Waihī and Tauranga is "chaos" as summer road maintenance coupled with a major road improvement project has caused significant delays.
Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency says while some delays resulting from the roadworks have been more significant than anticipated, motorists hadbeen asked to expect delays while road works were under way and the works would make the corridor safer and more efficient.
And the local mayor says commuters need to go through a little pain if they wanted to see improvements.
Western Bay of Plenty District Council Katikati-Waihi Beach Ward councillor Christina Humphreys said she had experienced "total gridlock" on the road.
At 11.45am on Friday the 5.7km journey from Work Rd to Pahoia Rd was expected to take an hour - so she turned around and went home.
Traffic woes are concerning residents who say it takes an hour to travel five kilometres. Photo / Supplied
Her comments came the same week a former road safety professional said roadworks on the highway were putting people in "unbelievable danger" after she experienced a near-miss with a driver travelling on the wrong side of the road.
Humphreys said the transport agency (NZTA) had met with councillors before Christmas.
"We virtually said don't come back to visit until you have the news that NZTA is starting a four-lane highway."
At the same time, more than $12.2m will be spent on maintenance across about 210km of state highway in the Bay of Plenty in the 2020/2021 maintenance season.
This includes resurfacing work currently under way at various sites between Athenree Gorge and Te Puna on SH2.
NZTA Bay of Plenty system manager Rob Campbell believes resurfacing works undertaken as part of the annual summer maintenance programme could have been the cause of Friday's delays.
This maintenance included road resurfacing works between Gill Lane and Snodgrass Rd - a 600m stretch.
These works were done overnight on January 21 but temporary speed restrictions needed during the day resulted in delays of about one hour the next day - the day Humphreys experienced "total gridlock" and Ray was stuck in traffic.
The resurfacing works are expected to be complete by February 5, depending on the weather.
Campbell said NZTA understood the delays had been frustrating and challenging to plan for but contractors were working hard to finish the critical works as quickly as they could.
Western Bay of Plenty District councillor Christina Humphreys. Photo / File
Tania Tuhakaraina travels on the road weekly to visit her mother in Katikati.
She said roadworks had slowed traffic down to 30km/h on her way out of Tauranga but it was when she was travelling back into the city she hit the "chaos".
"It took about one and a half hours to return home. This included turning off on to Esdaile Rd and into Whakamarama, then back on to State Highway 2."
Tuhakaraina believed doing the work at night would minimise disruptions.
In response, Campbell said the warmer spring and summer months were the best time for resurfacing as daylight hours were longer and the warm temperatures and dry air helped the new seal stick to the road surface.
"Motorists have been advised to expect delays while these works are under way, however, some of the delays experienced have been more significant than anticipated."
Contractors were working hard to minimise the disruption to motorists, including undertaking work at night, where possible, Campbell said.
"We are working hard to get this work completed while there is less traffic on the roads and ahead of the busy kiwifruit season.
"We ask motorists to do what they can to help minimise delays by planning ahead using the Waka Kotahi Journey Planner website or Google Maps for real-time information on travel times and delays, avoiding unnecessary travel and timing their travel for outside peak times, where possible."
Western Bay of Plenty mayor Garry Webber said the public needed to be "a little more tolerant" of the works and all the inconveniences would "absolutely" be worth it in the long run.
"There was a lot of public pressure - because this was a very dangerous road - to get the road upgraded."
He said there was obvious tension for drivers while making significant upgrades to a road.
"We've managed to get NZTA to accept that's the case, and they're spending the money. We have to accept that there will be some inconveniences while we go through this significant upgrade.
"This is what we campaigned for ... It's the pain you have to go through if you want the improvements to be made."
What is happening on State Highway 2?
To make this stretch of road safer Waka Kōtahi is:
• Widening the road • Putting in a wide centreline to help separate oncoming traffic • Widening the road shoulders to give drivers more room • Putting in roadside safety barriers where there are power poles, trees and deep ditches • Making intersections safer.
Construction is expected to begin on Stage One of the $933m Takitimu North Link project later this year, subject to property negotiations.
This project will connect Tauranga and Ōmokoroa with a new 14km four-lane corridor between State Highway 29 Takitimu Drive Toll Rd and State Highway 2 Ōmokoroa intersection.
