Puketapu School children quiz contractors about new bridge

Puketapu School children look on as their community's new bridge is being constructed.

Contractors building the new Puketapu Bridge fielded a volley of questions from Puketapu School children who gathered near the site on a visit to find out more about the project.

About 40 students this week met with Fulton Hogan and WSP (project designer) representatives, eager to find out more about the construction activity on the river, the booming noises being emitted over the past few weeks, and the two large cranes poking up into the skyline.

One of these cranes was one of the biggest in the country with a lifting capacity of 250 tonnes, Fulton Hogan contracts manager Joel Hodgson told the audience.

Looking down from a viewing area created for curious residents, large 1.8m diameter steel tubes/casings can be seen on the causeway, within which deep holes are being dug out and concrete poured in to form the bridge pier pile foundation to support the bridge.

To achieve the stability and strength needed, the piles will descend 40m down through the riverbed, secured in the hard rock below, Hodgson said.

The children were told the pounding noise that echoes across the area each day during the week is from the 14-tonne piling hammer attached to the crane, driving down a few millimetres per blow, eventually being filled with 100 cubic metres (20 truckloads) of concrete per pile.

There were many questions about the ability of the bridge to stand up to any future flooding and/or earthquakes.

They were assured that the bridge had been designed to withstand such events – its foundations close to 20 metres deeper than the previous bridge, and the structure built 10 metres higher to account for flooding.

In addition, while there were five columns holding up the original bridge, the replacement only had three – giving more space for debris to move with the river current and not get snagged underneath.

Another improvement was the fact it would have two lanes for traffic, and also a shared cycle/walk pathway.

For three students, Layla Wheatley, 11, Lola McCann, 12, and Tyrelle Karauria, 12, who all live on the south side of the river, the best thing about the new bridge would be the restored access to school and the rest of the Puketapu community, they said.

“It used to take us seven minutes to get to school and now we have to go all the way around and it takes us about 40 minutes,” Lola said.

A community open day is planned on Saturday, November 9 for the community to get an insight into the build and the progress being made.

An open day at Puketapu Park will be held the same day, sharing and celebrating the work the community has done to restore and enhance the park since the cyclone.

The Puketapu Bridge is one of 19 large bridges and culverts destroyed by Cyclone Gabrielle that Hastings District Council is having permanently rebuilt.

It’s anticipated the bridge will be completed in July next year, pending any weather events or unforeseen circumstances.