The NZ Transport Agency is reminding motorists to allow extra time for travel on the Kapiti Coast due to roadworks on State Highway 1 at Paekakariki.
NZTA Wellington operations manager Mark Owen says motorists will need to allow extra time for travel on the Kapiti Coast while important roadworks are being carried out over the next two months. The work is being carried out at night, with temporary speed restrictions in place during the day.
The work is currently being carried out on the southbound lane, so southbound traffic is expected to be more affected than northbound traffic, but speed restrictions apply to both lanes.
Stop-go traffic management is in place at night while the work is being carried out.
Mr Owen said delays this morning southbound were lengthy, but holdups were expected to decrease as motorists got used to the road surface and adjustments were made to traffic management to improve traffic flows.
"We appreciate these roadworks can be a bit of a headache for drivers, and while we've scheduled them during the evening to keep disruption to a minimum, the reality is that on such a busy highway, some delays will be unavoidable."
"With resurfacing, speed restrictions still need to be in place during the day as the new surface beds in, and that's why travel will take longer even while work is stopped."
"Every few years we need to do this work to give the road a new lease on life, and while we appreciate it can be frustrating, the work is necessary to ensure people have a consistent, safe and high friction surface to drive on."
Work will be carried out between 7.30pm and 5.30am with one lane of traffic kept open while work is ongoing. In the event of bad weather, work will be postponed to the next suitable night.
Temporary speed restrictions will be in place at all times, so motorists are asked to be prepared to reduce their speed and drive to the conditions. Mr Owen says the work will be put on hold over Easter to reduce disruption for holiday traffic.
The NZTA thanks motorists for their patience and understanding.
