An Auckland man says he was left sleep-deprived because of “deafening” roadwork noise near his home. Photo / Supplied
An Auckland man says he was left sleep-deprived because of “deafening” roadwork noise near his home. Photo / Supplied
An Auckland man says he was so sleep-deprived from “deafening” roadwork noise that he accidentally binned his daughter’s medication and his eftpos card while cleaning.
Over the six days of roadworks, he claims he suffered shortness of breath, ringing ears, constant sweating and weight loss.
The work wouldbegin each day at 8pm and could continue until 5am.
“It was like one really, really long day that never ended,” he said.
The man, who wanted to be named as S Dawson, told the Herald he was not notified of the construction plans before they began near his home this month.
Work near the intersection of Grey St and Onehunga Mall took place from Sunday, March 8, to Friday, March 13.
An Auckland Transport (AT) spokesperson said the roadworks were clearly communicated to residents.
“While we acknowledge the concerns raised about the impact of this work, our role is to balance the needs of residents, businesses and people travelling through the area, while completing work safely and efficiently,” AT said.
He said he understood some nearby residents were notified but claims his block of units was not.
“Our notification was when they all started turning up, getting ready to do work for that night,” he said.
Dawson said his sleep deprivation caused him to go through life on autopilot, and he accidentally threw out important items when he was cleaning in preparation for a smoke alarm inspection.
“I’ve thrown out a lot of stuff that I did not want to throw out,” he said.
Dawson said he was “extremely lenient” and did not complain for the first three nights.
An Auckland Transport spokesperson says the roadworks began on March 8 and had been “clearly communicated” to residents. Photo / Supplied
An AT spokesperson said they received one complaint after 10pm on Friday about the situation, and the contractor responded to the resident within 15 minutes.
AT said the contractor immediately implemented noise mitigation measures on site.
This included shutting down the Hydrovac unit, which was identified as the primary noise source, by about midnight, and it reduced overall site activity and noise where practicable.
“On Saturday, the contractor made the decision to cease all works, with the site team attending only to complete minor activities required to make the area safe due to the nature of the works involving live power.
“No excavation activities were being undertaken at this time, and this was communicated to the resident,” AT said.
Maungakiekie-Tāmaki Local Board chairwoman Debbie Burrows said she had not received any complaints and was not made aware by AT that any work was underway in the location.
“This is the site for a future project to construct a roundabout, but we have not been given a start date yet, which is also why the residents would not have received notification,” Burrows said.
An Auckland Transport spokesperson says there are times when roadworks need to be carried out at night. Photo / Supplied
Why was this work done overnight?
AT said street lighting contractors were on site during the night, undertaking preparatory civil works.
These activities have now been completed and the final streetlight installation is proposed to be co-ordinated with Downer roading works where possible.
“There are times when roadworks need to be carried out at night.
“Working in a mixed-use environment like Onehunga, where homes, apartments, shops and services are close together, can be challenging,” AT said.
The spokesperson said carrying out some work overnight allows the area to continue functioning during the day, when businesses rely on access, foot traffic, and when traffic volumes are highest.
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