Making hay, rebuilding roads while it is hot in South and Mid Canterbury

Expect to see more high-vis road crews and traffic managers repairing and re-sealing highways and keeping crews and road users safe around Mid and South Canterbury from now into the New Year.

“Give them a friendly wave,” says Simon Harty, Journey Manager for the NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) in Canterbury. “We are all human and working in some extreme conditions, on hot nor-westerly days, over the summer.”

He says that most road maintenance can only happen over the summer months, as the increased daylight hours, warmer temperatures and dry air are needed for the chip seal surfacing to stick to the pavements below.

”Our crews – contractors and sub-contractors – have a tight schedule, working through extremely variable conditions over summer. We all appreciate people building in extra time to reduce stress when the highways are getting busy.”

In South and Mid-Canterbury, road users will benefit from 10 lane km of full reconstruction (ie 5km two lane highway) and 68 lane km resurfaced to make the journey smoother and safer. 

“If travelling locally, people can build in an extra 20 minutes to their journeys which will help ease the pressure and reduce the temptation to make up the time if there is a short delay. This is safer for everyone – yourself and your passengers and other road users,” says Mr Harty.

“If travelling further afield, say between Christchurch and Timaru, you could be delayed by up to an hour overall, with multiple work sites and cumulative delays encountered while everyone is working to get their maintenance programmes completed in the fine weather.”

All work is funded through the State Highway Maintenance and Pothole Prevention activity classes in the National Land Transport Programme (NLTP).

Major Mid and South Canterbury works starting this side of Christmas

Timaru south to Glenavy

• From Wednesday 16 October, six weeks of road reconstruction over two sites south of Studholme, SH1, with temporary speed limits (30km/ h) and traffic signals running 24/7.
• From Monday, 21 October, a week’s worth of resurfacing in the same area at three places on SH1: near Pareora, the SH82 turnoff (Nosh Roadside Gourmet corner) and through Glenavy township. 
• The crew then moves onto SH82, the Waimate highway, for another week around Elephant Hill and Ikawai in November.

Timaru to Fairlie, SH8 – full summer programme

From Wednesday, 30 October, after Labour Weekend, through to the end of March 2025, three sites will be reconstructed in succession on SH8 near Winscombe Hill/Coal Stream between Fairlie and Albury under temporary speed limits, 30km/h, and traffic signals running 24/7.

Ashburton to Methven, SH77

From November, one week of resurfacing on SH77 starting near Winchmore.

Waimate to Ikawai, SH82 – change to timing of work and no full closures this side of Christmas

This reconstruction work was first indicated to start 1 November with a full road closure.

It is now likely to start Monday, 11 November, under Stop/Go traffic management leading into Christmas, says NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA).

More work will start in the New Year which may require a full traffic closure through the Waimate Gorge. Fewer days will be affected by the full closure, and a detour is proposed for traffic onto High St Waimate/ McNamaras Road, SH1, Old Ferry Road and Ikawai Middle Road. This detour will add 12 km to the Waimate Gorge route and add nine minutes to the trip. The detour is suitable for 50MAX vehicles.

Ashburton to Timaru, SH1

Ongoing work on the SH1 Rangitata River Bridge with intermittent night closures mid to late November.

Ashburton 2024 and 2025

• Pre-reseal pavement repairs on SH1 between Long Beach and Rakaia start late October and November, with chipseal resurfacing to sections of the highway to be completed in January.
• Pre-reseal pavement repairs to SH77 (the Methven highway) start this month (October) with chipseal resurfacing to sections of the highway to be completed in November.
• The major project for Ashburton township is in March 2025 with a structural asphalt upgrade of SH1 between the Ashburton Bridge and Dobson St, along with resurfacing from Dobson to Moore Streets.

In the New Year, 2025

In the New Year, NZTA has resurfacing programmed for:

• SH1 Rakaia to Timaru
• SH79 Geraldine to Fairlie and
• SH8 Pleasant Point to Lake Pukaki/Mt Cook/Aoraki turnoff (SH80).
• Asphaltic concrete surfacing is planned for Waimate, Timaru, Fairlie and Ashburton township areas as well as re-surfacing the Hinds and Rangitata River Bridge decks.
• The road reconstruction sites on SH8 near Winscombe Hill/Coal Stream and on SH82 through the Waimate Gorge will continue after the Christmas break into the New Year.

Quick tips for happy summer travel

• Remember, there will be delays on key routes.  Drivers should check road conditions before they travel – Waka Kotahi’s traffic pages(external link) and MetService for weather forecasts(external link)
• Always take care when driving through road work sites and follow the temporary speed restrictions to ensure everyone stays safe. Our crews work year-round, they deserve to be safe.
• Keeping your speed down where sealing work is underway or has just been completed not only helps chip to settle in the new road surface, it will also prevent stone chips flying into windscreens and protect road workers from injuries.
• Leave about two car lengths between you and the car in front, four if the weather is bad.
• Even if you can’t see workers on the road or it looks like works are finished when you come across a temporary speed limit sign, safety hazards may still be present. There could be loose chip from a recent re-seal, or workers underneath a culvert or bridge or on the side of the road.