State highway pavement review – next steps

The Pavement Delivery Review Steering Group have completed their work to investigate the recommendations in the 2020 Review of State Highway Pavement Delivery and develop a prioritised implementation plan to improve performance.

Waka Kotahi commissioned a review of state highway pavement delivery process following pavement failures on some projects. The Review considered the current end-to-end system delivery requirements for new pavements and rehabilitation construction.

The Review noted that the Waka Kotahi organisational systems and process for end-to-end delivery were well formulated and sound but identified nine key recommendations for improvement.

Bringing together representatives from Waka Kotahi, contractors, consultants and suppliers, the Steering Group set-up seven workstreams to investigate the findings in the Review and develop the implementation plan which has identified 37 Required Responses for the nine key recommendations in the Review.

The industry Steering Group’s Required Responses will:

  • Require the sector participants to work together.
  • Be implemented at a practical level.
  • Support delivery of quality pavements.
  • Offer value for money.
  • Enable enduring outcomes.
  • Support a thriving industry and competent workforce.

Review documents

State highway pavement delivery process review

In 2020, Waka Kotahi concluded a review of state highway pavement delivery process (the Review) following a number of pavement failures on projects. The Review considered the current end-to-end system delivery requirements for new pavements and rehabilitation construction. This work was led by an independent reviewer, Lindsay Crossen of Lincross Contracting.

Waka Kotahi presented the outcomes from the Review to executives of Civil Contractors New Zealand (CCNZ) on 13 March 2020.

The Review notes that Waka Kotahi’s organisational systems and process for end-to-end delivery are well formulated and sound but makes nine key recommendations for improvement.

The Review recommendations are to:

  • review our pavement guidance to align performance expectations to levels of risk
  • review and upgrade risk profiles and better define integrated performance criteria for some pavement types
  • refine technical matters that may influence integrity in design, aggregate acceptance, construction practices and conformance testing
  • consider benefits of industry expertise being engaged for design on capital projects
  • review procurement requirements to highlight expectations of reliability and serviceability performance requirements over the longer term
  • implement quality assurance principles through all end to end pavement delivery phases
  • strengthen emphasis on real time quality testing and information sharing
  • provide industry leadership to support a sustainable pavement industry and
  • facilitate ongoing training in the use of current standards and guidelines.

Waka Kotahi accepts all nine recommendations and is setting up a steering group to prioritise and implement the recommendations in collaboration with industry.

Review of State Highway Pavement Delivery – January 2020 [PDF, 1 MB]