SH11 at Lemons Hill re-opens after fresh slip cleared

Lemons Hill on SH11 has been closed due to a landslip the day it was due to fully reopen. Photo / John Stone

State Highway 11 at Lemons Hill has re-opened to one-way traffic after a fresh slip blocked the road overnight — but the re-opening of both lanes has now been delayed until next week.

SH11 was to have fully re-opened this morning after being closed on and off since
a massive slip in February.

Thursday night's slip dumped soil and trees onto the highway but contractors managed to get traffic flowing again, one lane at a time, around 10.30am today.

Stop/go traffic management will continue during the weekend.

Jacqui Hori-Hoult, NZ Transport Agency's Northland manager, said after an inspection of the hillside this morning it was estimated it would take three days to remove trees and loose material from the edge of the original slip.

Crews would work over the weekend and on Monday. She expected the road to re-open to two-way traffic late on Monday afternoon.

''Our crews will be working on the road so we ask motorists to drive with care, be vigilant, and keep to the temporary speed limit to ensure the safety of all road users,'' Hori-Hoult said.

While SH11 was closed motorists had to use the alternative route via State Highways 1, 10 and 11, adding to an extra 30 minutes for the journey between Kawakawa and Paihia.

Last week the road closed on Sunday from 8am to 5pm to remove the remaining trees and install a culvert.

Work has been underway to clear the road and stabilise the hillside after heavy rain from ex-tropical Cyclone Fehi brought down a massive slip on February 13.