Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency is advising road users that State Highway 2 over the Remutaka Hill will be closed between 9pm and 4am for five nights, from Sunday 5 September to Friday 10 September 2021.
Regional Maintenance and Operations Manager Mark Owen says the work will take place under the COVID-19 Alert Level 3 health and safety protocols to keep workers and road users safe.
“With most people still isolating at home under Alert Level 3, we expect only people with essential travel needs will be escorted across the hill.”
The five-night block closure is the first of a number of planned closures between September 2021 and July 2022 to enable road crews to safely undertake essential maintenance and slip prevention works for the safety of all road users.
While the dates are fixed, bad weather or COVID-19 restrictions may cause works to be cancelled but no other full closure dates are planned during this period except in an emergency.
“The Remutaka Hill road is steep, narrow and winding which makes it a challenging environment for our crews to work in. Having the road fully closed to traffic is critical to ensuring the safety of crews while they carry out this essential work,” Mr Owen says.
“The night-time closures also significantly reduce the number of daytime disruptions for road users and enable better quality of maintenance work.
“Road crews are able to complete many months’ worth of maintenance in a small number of closures because multiple crews can work across the hill at the same time without disrupting traffic. This significantly reduces stop/go disruptions for road users at other times which used to occur almost daily.”
Access will be available for emergency services throughout the closure.
An escorted vehicle service is available for people with essential travel needs only and should be booked by this Friday.
To book, please email lynsey.morgan@capitaljourneys.co.nz.
Health and safety protocols will include staying in your car at all times and wearing a mask for any interactions with road staff.
For more information on the Remutaka Hill closures, including the full schedule of planned closures up to June 2022, visit the project page.
SH2 Remutaka Hill Road night closures project page
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