Waka Kotahi has met with affected community members to outline options for those in the closure zone when State Highway 6 closes for emergency repairs next month.
The route will be closed at six am Tuesday, 1 November and is due to reopen on Sunday, 18 December. The closure zone is between Hira, near Nelson, and Ronga Road, in the Rai Valley.
The seven-week closure is vital to allow essential repairs and resilience work on the critical transport link between Nelson and Blenheim. Over the past few weeks, Waka Kotahi representatives have been meeting with affected residents in the closure zone to discuss their situation and available access options.
Mark Owen, Regional Manager Lower North Island and Top of the South, says arrangements have been made for residents and those with business commitments and animal welfare requirements within the closure area.
“They will have access to and from Kokorua Road via a forestry track at the top of Whangamoa range to the Hira end of the closure. All access will be via escorted convoys at scheduled times for safety reasons.”
Mr Owen says the trips will take approximately 40 minutes. The route is a safe but narrow and steep gravel forestry road.
“Our aim is to run 12 convoys daily. Three each way in the morning and three each way in the afternoon/evening. We hope this should help those families caught up in the closure zone while the repairs to State Highway 6 are carried out.”
Mr Owen says Waka Kotahi accepts the affected residents are in a difficult situation and to have their road access affected in this way is a huge burden. However, he says there were no easy options given how fragile State Highway 6 is.
“If there were to be another significant flood, the route could be shut down entirely for months. This would have a huge impact on local communities and businesses and is something we want to avoid at all costs. A seven-week closure, and getting the work done as quickly as possible, is the only way to mitigate this risk”, Mr Owen says.
Waka Kotahi is thanking Tasman Pine Forest Limited and the owners of the land, Ngāti Koata, for their assistance. Mr Owen says the access being provided couldn’t have happened without their cooperation.
Detour maps
People can travel between Blenheim and Nelson by using State Highway 63 (SH63) through to Kawatiri junction, then State Highway 6 (SH6).
While there are other options to travel on local roads from St Arnaud, we recommend people stay on the state highways, as they are safer and suited to higher traffic volumes and all vehicle types.
Questions and answers
When is the road closure on State Highway 6?
- We are closing the road between Hira and Ronga Road near Rai Valley on State Highway 6 (SH6) from 6 am Tuesday, 1 November. It is scheduled to reopen on Sunday, 18 December. This is to allow emergency repairs to be carried out on the route,
- People can travel between Blenheim and Nelson by using State Highway 63 (SH63) through to Kawatiri junction, then SH6.
- We realise the closure is for a substantial amount of time, but the SH6 route is currently vulnerable, and another serious weather event could seriously damage it and see it closed for many months. We are prioritising getting these emergency repairs done as quickly as possible and making every effort to restore the route before the busy Christmas period.
Can SH6 be open at night or at intervals to let people through?
- We have looked at alternate ways to do this work while minimising disruption for people. Other options would have required at least a three-week full closure and a much longer overall project time of up to 30 weeks. This would see the project extend into the busy Christmas and New Year holiday period and beyond. Under this alternative approach, road users would also experience significant travel delays when driving through the work sites.
- It will be impossible to open the road for intervals during the day or night due to its narrowness and the work that needs to be done. During the work, the crew will be six metres below the current road level and accessing the site from each side. While this is being done, there will be no road to drive on.
Will the work be carried out 24/7 and during the weekends within the 7-week closure period?
- Our contractors are gearing up for the emergency works construction period. There will be around 100 to 150 workers on site each day over the five construction sites, plus additional workers carrying out other maintenance and resilience work being bought into the closure.
- It is expected work will happen predominately during daylight hours. To speed progress, some work will be done at night. This will be subject to resources, programming, and the health and safety of our crews. Contractors will be working on-site seven days a week.
- By the numbers:
- 8000t imported rock boulders
- 15,000t of excavation
- 15,000t of imported granular rock fill
- 800m of drilling and rock anchors
- 100m of drilled and cased piles
- 300m3 of concrete
- 500m culverts
- 18,000m2 of chip sealing
- 2000m2 of pavement maintenance
Will people within the closure zone have access to their properties during the closure period?
- Yes. We have worked with Tasman Pine Forest Limited and the owners of the land, Ngāti Koata, to allow restricted convoyed access to Hira on the Nelson side.
- It will be available to residents and those with business commitments and animal welfare requirements within the closure area. They will have access to and from Kokorua Road (and the surrounding area) via a forestry track at the top of the Whangamoa Range to the Hira end of the closure.
- All vehicles will travel in an escorted convoy at scheduled times for safety reasons.
We are looking to run three convoys each way in the morning and in the afternoon (12 per day). They will be for residents only and not available to the public. Access to the forestry road will be carefully monitored.
Will residents within the closure zone get similar access into the Rai Valley and can Rai Valley residents get access to Nelson?
- Unfortunately, there is no suitable forestry road option over the Rai Saddle as it was severely damaged during the August floods. This means there is no access option from the closure area at the Rai Saddle end.
- People from the Rai Valley and beyond need to access Nelson via the alternative SH63 route. Once the work is underway, we will review if there is any opportunity to provide some form of limited access for a small number with critical requirements. At this stage, there is no certainty that this will be available during the seven-week closure period.
What other support is available to affected residents?
- Waka Kotahi is not in a position to provide compensation for road closures due to emergency state highway repairs. However, additional support may be available via local councils and their Mayoral Relief Funds.
How will people within the road closure area be able to access emergency services?
- Access to emergency services (ambulance, fire and police, along with emergency vets) will be provided as required. An emergency Fulton Hogan phone number for urgent access issues will be available to residents in the closure area.
