Ahead of another busy ‘construction’ season commencing in October, contractors are completing a range of work on State Highway 1 between Cambridge and Piarere next month to help ensure the state highway network can continue to operate safely and efficiently.
From Monday 8 August, SH1 will be closed between Karapiro Road and the SH1/State Highway 29 intersection, from 9am to 4pm, for one week. This will allow tree felling and road surface repairs to take place safely and efficiently.
When undertaking tree related work, traffic needs to be stopped periodically when trees are felled, to ensure the safety of work crews and road users, says Cara Lauder, Waikato System Manager, Maintenance and Operations, and it makes sense to close the road for longer periods to increase efficiency.
“Every time the crew stops traffic it takes time to set up traffic management, and then pack down again to let everyone through afterwards. By closing the road for a number of hours at a time we are letting the team get on with their core job within a protected environment. This speeds up their work, getting more done within a shorter timeframe.
“Closing the road also allows us to complete other work within the same area, reducing overall delays throughout the busy summer period.”
During the road closure, people will be detoured via Karapiro Road, Taotaoroa Road and SH29; HPMV, over-weight and over-dimension vehicles will be stacked at either end of the worksite and let through at 11am and 1pm. Residents and businesses will have access to and from their properties throughout the day, as required.
“For those driving from further afield, we recommend you plan your journey in advance and allow additional time for your journeys due to the closure. Travellers heading to Tauranga, Taupō or other destinations may wish to consider using State Highway 27 and other connecting state highways to avoid delays,” suggests Ms Lauder.
“Keep up to date with the Waka Kotahi Journey Planner for the latest information.”
Waka Kotahi Journey Planner(external link)
Later this year, work to rebuild a section of SH1 just north of Gorton Road is planned alongside a number of reseal sites on the Cambridge to Piarere corridor. As well as this, a further 4.2km of flexible median barrier is expected to be installed by the end of spring 2023, complementing the 1.6km that was installed in May 2022, and 2.5km installed in December 2020.
“The work this summer builds on what was completed last summer, which included resurfacing the intersections with Hydro Road and Karapiro Road, completing the resurfacing near Maungatautari Road, and installing the flexible median barriers along the same Maungatautari section,” says Ms Lauder.
“These changes support New Zealand’s Road to Zero vision of zero deaths and serious injuries on our roads by ensuring we have safe roads for everyone to drive on.”
Waka Kotahi is investing $150 million into road maintenance in the Waikato region during 2022/23.
