Major road works for Chadwick Road
Work to rebuild Chadwick Road between Fraser Street and Mitchell Street is due to start on Monday 7 January 2013.
This section of road needs rebuilding because it has reached the end of its life. Rebuilding the road is expected to take about six weeks to complete, depending on weather. The project also involves renewal of the kerb and channeling, improvements to bus stops and drainage and vehicle entrance upgrades where required. The final asphalt surfacing will be laid several weeks after the initial work has been completed. This is to allow the new road to settle.
While the work is being done, there will be lane closures in place from time to time on Chadwick Road between Fraser Street and Mitchell Street. This will allow the contractors to complete the project more quickly and will mean less disruption to motorists in the long run. Short detours will be in place.
Mount Road Closures for Port of Tauranga Half Iron Man: 4 and 5 January 2013
The following roads will be closed from 6:00am on Friday 4 January 2013 until 5:00pm on Saturday 5 January 2013 for the Port of Tauranga Half Iron Man: Salisbury Wharf Car Park, Salisbury Avenue from Victoria Road and The Mall from Salisbury Avenue to Prince Avenue.
On Saturday 5 January 2013 the following roads will also be closed for the event from 6:00am: Salisbury Avenue, The Mall, Adams Avenue, Marine Parade, Oceanbeach Road, Maranui Street from Yale Street to Papamoa Beach Road and Papamoa Beach Road from Maranui Street to Pacific View Road. These roads will reopen progressively as participants pass through each area. The last areas are expected to reopen at approximately 5.00pm.
Access to and from Papamoa will be via Sunrise Avenue, Grenada Street and Girven Road.
The NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) is advising motorists planning their summer journeys over the holiday season to be aware of road works in the Waikato and Bay of Plenty regions. Road maintenance activity increases over the summer months to take advantage of good weather, which contributes to the efficiency and effectiveness of this work.
The NZTA also advised that maintaining and repairing the region's roads is an integral part of their focus on Safer Journeys for all road users, which includes safer roads and roadsides as one of its four key 'safe system' focus points (the others being safe speeds; safe vehicles; and safe drivers).
NZTA state highway managers, Kaye Clark (Waikato) and Brett Gliddon (Bay of Plenty) say they are keen to ensure the safety of all road users driving through their regions.
"The Waikato and Bay of Plenty regions contain over 2600km of state highway," explains Mrs Clark.
"Several of these roads carry some of the highest traffic loads in the country. Each year the NZTA carries out about 45km of road construction and around 300km of resealing in these two regions."
Mr Gliddon adds that staying on track with the regions' works programmes when weather conditions are good allows crews to get the most effective results and the best value from repairs and construction work.
"This also ensures our roads' accessibility and safety are maintained year-round for road users," Mr Gliddon said.
"People want to know, 'why we don't wait until later in the year away from peak summer holiday times?' The answer is that wet or cold conditions can decrease the durability of our repair or construction work - for example, reducing how long a resealing repair will last."
"People also ask us, 'why don't we work overnight or on weekends instead?'" says Mrs Clark.
"From time to time we do work at night and on weekends. We usually do this where the road works are needed on roads with very high traffic volumes, as carrying out these activities during normal work hours on weekdays would cause untenable congestion and unreasonable delays."
Both state highway managers emphasise that wherever possible, the NZTA does its best to keep delays to a minimum.