Hawke’s Bay Expressway four-laning groundworks under way; construction to start late 2025

The Government says construction of the Hawke’s Bay Expressway four-laning project has been brought forward and is expected to begin in late 2025, with groundworks under way.

Tukituki National MP Catherine Wedd praised the project update as “welcome news” for the region. Groundworks started on Monday near Napier’s Kennedy Rd.

The 27km expressway is part of State Highway 2 and the main connector between Napier and Hastings.

It becomes clogged at peak times and the Government has committed to turning the two-lane corridor into four lanes over four stages.

The first stage is a 6.5km stretch between Taradale Rd (in Napier) and Pākowhai Rd (about halfway between Napier and Hastings).

NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) wants to complete stage one in 2028, stage two by 2030, and stages three and four by 2034, which will be completed together.

On Monday, Transport Minister Simeon Brown confirmed groundworks were under way on the road of national significance.

“Early works have now started on ... this critical corridor that carries 29,000 vehicles a day and links freight to one of New Zealand’s largest ports,” he said.

“Starting work now allows the NZTA to maximise the 2025/2026 construction season and bring forward the construction of this project by 12 to 15 months.”

Construction is anticipated to begin in late 2025.

The initial enabling works, to prepare the corridor for construction, include clearing vegetation and placing repurposed Cyclone Gabrielle silt to raise the level of the land and create a flat surface.

Sites where the land is raised need at least 12 months to compact and settle before construction can start.

Funding of $100 million has been put aside for the first three years of the expressway project between 2024-2027.

Wedd said it was an important project and fantastic to see “shovels in the ground and diggers ready to make it a reality”.

“This is welcome news for our region as it will help drive productivity and get people around safely and efficiently,” she said.

Tukituki MP Catherine Wedd (left) and Napier MP Katie Nimon at the Kennedy Rd turnoff in Napier, where groundworks have begun on the expressway upgrade.

“Cyclone Gabrielle showed us what can happen if our region doesn’t have future-proofed and resilient roading infrastructure.”

Napier National MP Katie Nimon, who has previously stated construction would begin this election term (by 2026), was happy to see progress being made.

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“I get asked every week about the start date, so to get this news and to see work starting makes a huge difference to people’s wellbeing. Progress is so important.”

There is a possibility the expressway could be tolled in future to help pay for the upgrades, however, a decision has not been made on whether that will eventuate.

Stage one will include additional overbridges being built at Kennedy Rd and Meeanee Rd and an additional bridge over the Tūtaekurī River.

Gary Hamilton-Irvine is a Hawke’s Bay-based reporter who covers a range of news topics including business, councils, breaking news and cyclone recovery. He formerly worked at News Corp Australia.