The NZ Transport Agency will remove the cordons on State Highway 25 north of Thames at 6pm today (Wednesday 10 January), with light traffic able to use the road without the need for convoys.
“This a great result to be able to remove the cordons and convoys as it further reduces the delay for anyone who needs to use this stretch of SH 25,” Waikato Transport System Manager, Karen Boyt says.
“Despite this the journey will take a lot longer than usual due to Stop/Go traffic control and speed restrictions in a number of locations between Thames and Manaia.
“This road will continue to be a work site for some time yet and we would ask motorists to take extra care for the safety of themselves and site staff and to prevent further damage to the highway,” Ms Boyt says.
To minimise the risk of further damage, heavy vehicles over five tonnes have been prohibited from SH 25 between Te Puru and Manaia and are required to take the alternative route via SH 25A through Kopu and SH 25 on the eastern side of the Coromandel Peninsula.
Work to develop a full programme for the repairs to SH 25 should be complete by the middle of next week (17 January). Along the 42 kilometres of highway between Thames and Manaia, 29 locations, totalling about 2.4 kilometres, have been identified as high priority. There is a much larger number of medium and low priority sites that are being identified and added to the programme for repair, says Ms Boyt.
