Completion work is under way on a safety improvement project on State Highway 1 south of Ātiamuri and Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency advises travellers to factor in extra time for their journeys.
Flexible safety barriers are in place along a 4.5km stretch of highway, but finishing works are required, including the application of a second coat of seal and repairs to areas that didn’t achieve appropriate quality standards last construction season.
To minimise additional inconvenience, we’re undertaking other maintenance works scheduled for this construction season at the same time. The work started today (Monday 16 October) and will be completed before Christmas.
Traffic is passing through the site under stop-go from 7am to 5pm weekdays, along with a 50km/h speed restriction. The estimated delay is five minutes. There will be no work over Labour Weekend.
There is another similar stop-go site further south at Oruanui where road repairs are expected to be complete by late October.
The Ātiamuri works are part of a corridor-long project to improve safety between Piarere and Taupō. Flexible safety barriers will be installed along a nearby section of SH1 starting from the Waikato River bridge south for 6.9km. Construction works are under way behind temporary steel barriers with a speed restriction of 50km/h.
“We have identified several stretches of the 93km between Piarere and Taupō that can be made safer through road widening and the installation of flexible safety barriers,” says Waka Kotahi Regional Manager for Infrastructure Delivery, Jo Wilton.
“These upgrades mean the road is more forgiving if someone makes a mistake, with crashes less likely to result in death or serious injury.’’
Opportunities for further safety improvements will be investigated and constructed as funding becomes available.
