A raft of recovery work is coming up along State Highway 2 between Napier and Wairoa over the coming month, as crews continue repairing the cyclone-damaged road.
Overnight work begins from Sunday (29 September) at Devil’s Elbow on a variety of work including shoulder widening, culvert installation, culvert inlet and outlet works, pavement works, asphalt surfacing and guardrail works.
The nightwork is expected to last until late October, with crews aiming to finish the work in the lead up to Labour weekend.
These overnight works will take place under the existing traffic management, so people travelling will experience similar travel times as during the day – the only change will be people driving through at night will now see more crew members at various sites throughout the Devil’s Elbow area.
Crews are expecting to complete repair work at 5 sites throughout Devil’s Elbow this spring. Four more sites will begin later this year, with most likely completed by Easter next year.
Learn more about the recovery work at Devil’s Elbow:
State Highway 2 Devil’s Elbow recovery work(external link)
A reminder that the Waikare Gorge Bailey bridge will be closing for two nights next week while new bridge deck panels are installed:
Overnight closures on SH2 at Waikare Gorge Bailey bridge for essential maintenance(external link)
The bridge, on SH2 at Pūtōrino between Wairoa and Napier, will be closed to all traffic on Monday 30 September and Tuesday 1 October – between 9pm and 5am each night. There is no viable detour, so please plan ahead.
The work will be finished by 5am on Wednesday 2 October. The contingency date is the same time the following night 9pm to 5am, Wednesday 2 October.
From next Tuesday, crews will be onsite at Waikoau Hill, just south of Tūtira, working overnight on rock scaling the upper and lower sections of the hillside above the road.
The work will be carried out 5 nights a week (not on Friday or Saturday nights) between 8pm and 5am, Sundays to Thursdays. Because of the Waikare Bailey bridge closure starting at 9pm, the crew will start rock scaling at 9pm Tuesday 1 October. From Wednesday 2 October, the team will begin 8pm for the duration of the works.
The work is expected to be completed by 5am Friday 18 October.
During this work, stop/stop traffic management will be place (where both directions are held) for up to 15 minutes.
This work is a continuation of the rock scaling which began in May and had to be postponed because of the wet weather.
Rock scaling is crucial to ensure all loose material is removed from the hillside.
