We're crossing our fingers for more fine weather so we can continue to make solid progress. David McGonigal, NZTA
IT'S A rocky time for crews working to clear the Manawatu Gorge and for one Pahiatua business woman.
Rebecca Algie took over the Bridge Cafe in Ballance in May last year, just three months before a massive slip closed the road. Business plummeted and Rebecca decided keeping the cafe open during the week wasn't feasible - she was losing approximately $2000 a week. She then made the decision to only open on Friday nights and weekends, which meant cutting back hours for her seven staff. Now, with the gorge closure a record-breaking 164 days and still no end in sight, Rebecca has made the difficult decision to close the doors until traffic is flowing once again.
Support from locals, especially at the popular Friday pizza nights, hasn't been enough to keep the cafe open, Rebecca says
In a bid to direct people back to the cafe, Rebecca also put up a number of new signs around the district to let people know they can still get access to the cafe.
"The signs did make a bit of a difference and some people cottoned on to the fact you can get on to the Pahiatua Track this way but, unfortunately, they aren't stopping at the cafe."
"This closure is only temporary though. I just have to wait for the gorge to reopen."
NZTA Palmerston North state highways manager David McGonigal said the NZTA hoped to announce a prospective timeframe for the reopening of the gorge this week.
Tararua District Mayor Roly Ellis said he had dropped into some Woodville businesses since Christmas and, while the owners were not happy with the length of time the gorge had been closed, they were accepting of what had happened.
"Over Christmas things did improve for businesses there, but I think the unseasonable weather has put a lot of people off travelling anyway. The owner of the Coppermine Camp site, between Woodville and Dannevirke, tells me he hasn't had the bookings he'd normally have. He said a lot of campers had been put off coming because they didn't want to travel over the Saddle Rd."
However, Mr Ellis said he believed it was not just the gorge closure causing the drop off in visitors. "It seems as though there aren't the discretionary dollars out there at the moment. Here in the Tararua, I don't think we've seen the rural money being spent yet either. Farmers aren't going to spend until they know they've got the money in the bank."
Meanwhile, Mr McGonigal said crews in the gorge were striking increasing amounts of rock at the slip site, and a big job remained ahead shifting the rock and completing the benching. "The increased amount of greywacke rock crews have uncovered lately is both a blessing and a curse for the crews working to secure the hillside."
"It's much more difficult and time-consuming to shift rock than dirt, so it's proving to be hard work for our crews up on the slope. The silver lining is that it's shedding more light on the geological makeup of the slope, and the more solid rock that we find, the more secure it's likely to be.
"However, the rock we've uncovered so far is quite fractured, so benching the hillside remains the linchpin of keeping the slope stable in the long-run"
He said crews have had another week of good progress stabilising the slip face. "The third bench is nearly done, and we expect to start cutting the fourth bench next week. Mother Nature smiled on us last week, and we're crossing our fingers for more fine weather, so we can continue to make solid progress.
"Crews continue to work long hours, seven days a week and, as we cut more and more into the slip, we're getting a clearer picture of exactly what we're facing."
Mr McGonigal said the planting was taking hold well on the batter (edge) of the first bench, and moss hydroseeding on the Bench No2 batter was planned for this week.
The Woodville end of the second bench is also being tapered to allow more working room for the crew on the third bench. This tapering will also allow for better drainage that will help to keep the hillside secure.
Mr McGonigal said the work site was still challenging and safety remained paramount. Spotters are in place at both the top and bottom of the slip to watch for any indication of movement that may put workers at risk.
"Road crews continue to cart out as much material as possible, although the material below the benches has been left in place as it acts as a working platform for the machines as they come down the slip. This means that only small amounts of it can be removed by the trucks down at road level."