Waikato and Bay of Plenty state highway works for October 2022

14 October 2022 7:56 am | Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency

The first new coats of seal have been applied onto the Waikato and Bay of Plenty state highway network, as fine weather has allowed crews to get out on the roads.

Drivers should err on the side of caution when driving through fresh chipseal, and follow all signage on site, especially temporary speed limits, says Roger Brady, Bay of Plenty System Manager at Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency.

“After a new layer of seal has been applied, it takes time for the seal to ‘bed in’ to the existing road surface. Particularly during the first 48 hours there will be loose chip on the road surface, before the road is swept and linemarked. During this time temporary speed limits will be in place to ensure the safety of road users, and to ensure the seal can settle successfully.

“At times we will have several sites on a stretch of road either recently sealed or in the process of being sealed. Please slow down, respect our crews and enjoy your journey. We work hard to minimise delays at sites, and will use detours or other types of traffic management to minimise the number of times people have to stop due to roadworks.

“Our crews are working hard to deliver the largest programme the region has seen; and everyone involved is up for the job. However, crews will be off the road by midday on Friday 21 October, ahead of Labour Day Weekend, to ensure everyone can get to their holiday destination as quickly as possible.

“Crews will be back on the road from the morning of Tuesday 25 October, so for those extending their holiday we recommend you keep your eye on the Waka Kotahi Journey Planner before heading home, as this provides real-time updates on the network,” says Mr Brady.

Journey Planner(external link)

In total Waka Kotahi is undertaking a programme of over 2450 lane kilometres of road resealing and rebuilding across the country, to be completed by the end of the second quarter of 2023.

Bay of Plenty

Tauranga

Takitimu North Link Stage One: A range of construction activities are taking place between Te Puna and Bethlehem. This includes stop/go traffic management in place at Te Mete Road and Wairoa Road, and a number of shoulder closures and temporary speed limits. Cambridge Road will be closed between Moffat Road and St Andrews Drive on Saturday 29 October, between 7am and 7pm, to allow tree felling activity to take place. When trees are being felled traffic will be stopped on Moffat Road. More information(external link).
SH2 Hewletts Road: As part of the Tauranga City Council Totara Street cycleway project, work at the intersection of SH2 Hewletts Road and Totara Street is underway and will be completed by mid-November. Construction work includes signalising the existing slip lane and upgrading the island to provide a fully signalised crossing for shared path users. These works will take place between Tasman Quay and Totara Street from Sunday to Thursday night between 8pm and 6am. Eastbound traffic along Hewletts Road will be maintained on both lanes but will be reduced to one lane intermittently during this time. Minimal delays are expected. More information(external link).
SH2 Bay Link: There will be single lane closures on SH2/Maunganui Road between Concord Avenue and Exeter Street, and on the approaches to Bayfair roundabout, from approximately 7pm to 6am, Sunday 16 October to Thursday 20 October to allow for backfilling behind new concrete barriers and reinstatement of the temporary barriers around the northern ramp of the Bayfair flyover. This work was delayed due to heavy rain and remains weather dependent. If it is delayed due to weather or other unforeseen issues, it will be carried out during the next suitable shift. Drivers are reminded of the new layout at the Bayfair roundabout. More information(external link).
SH29 Takitimu Drive Toll Road: Utility upgrades will take place behind barriers until Christmas. Night works will take place from 7am Monday 17 October through to 6pm Tuesday 18 October, and Tuesday 25 October, starting 6pm through to 6am Wednesday 26 October. A section of the Kopurererua Valley cycleway remains temporarily closed while services are relocated. There is an alternate track parallel to the closed section and signposted for track users. This work is expected to be completed in October. A reduced speed limit of 80km/h will be in place while our contractor’s crews are working behind the barriers. More information(external link).
SH29 Tauriko West: Underground service location work is taking place on SH29 between the Omanawa Road intersection and the Takitimu Drive Toll Road roundabout, as well as on Cambridge Road, Whiore Avenue and Taurikura Drive. Work will take place from Sunday 16 October to Friday 28 October and will be carried out at night between 7pm and 6am. Stop/go traffic management and a 30km/h speed limit will be in place due to lane and shoulder closures. It is expected that most works will be completed over one to two nights at each location. More information(external link).
SH2 Tauranga Eastern Link Toll Road (TELTR): For the Tauranga City Council led Pāpāmoa East Interchange project, traffic on the Tauranga Eastern Link Toll Road just north of the Kaituna River Bridge is back to three lanes. Whilst earthworks continue on the south side of the road, both eastbound lanes are open and normal speed applies. One westbound lane is open whilst work continues in the outer westbound lane, speed past the worksite is set at 70km/h. This layout will remain in place until April 2023. More information.(external link)

Western Bay of Plenty

SH2 Waihī to Ōmokoroa: Safety improvement works continue at five active sites: between Athenree Road and Tanners Point Road, Tanners Point Road to Tuapiro Road, Rea Road / Tetley Road intersection, Morton Road intersection and Apata Station Road to Esdaile Road. Minor delays are expected. More information(external link).
SH29 Kaimai Range: Maintenance activities including road surface repairs, subsoil drainage installation and chipsealing are taking place this week. Most work will take place at night, depending on the location of the work there will be either shoulder or lane closures, and potentially stop/go traffic management in place. Minor delays are expected.

Rotorua

SH30 Eastern Corridor Stage Two: Night works will take place tonight, Friday 14 October, to allow contractors to realign the temporary traffic barrier on the westbound side of SH30/Te Ngae Road between Iles and Basley Roads. A full road closure of SH30 between Iles Road and Ōwhata Road will be in place from 8pm to 6am.There will be a detour along Vaughan Road for all vehicles. Local eastbound traffic will be able to use the right hand turn at the Iles Road intersection. Please follow the detour signs in place. Minor delays are expected. Multiple worksites are active between Iles Road and Puketāwhero Park to excavate the shared service trench for the relocation of underground services and installation of the new watermain. Temporary traffic management will be in place with no left turn lane out of Basley Road to SH30/Te Ngae Road, and no left turn from the SH30/Te Ngae Road westbound lane into Tennyson Drive; minor delays are expected. The upgraded footpath on the lakeside between Iles Road to Tennyson Drive, heading east on SH30/Te Ngae Road, is now open. Works continue in the area and pedestrians are asked to take care. More information(external link).
SH30/SH33 Te Ngae Junction: Construction of the safety improvements continue with excavation, stabilising and pavement work underway. During the day and when crews are on site temporary traffic management will be in place, with either two lanes open or a stop/go or contraflow set up in place. There is also a reduced speed limit of 30km/h through the site. This work is weather dependent. At times there will be minor traffic delays, and people are asked to take extra care while traveling through the site. More information(external link).
SH33 Te Ngae Junction to Paengaroa: Safety improvement upgrade work continues near Pareteiro - Sun Valley Curves passing lane. During the day and when the crew are on site, either two lanes will be open or stop/go will be in place – depending on the works. A temporary speed limit of 30km/h applies. Outside of work hours and when the site is unattended, the worksite will have a shoulder closure and a temporary speed limit of 50km/h. There are also ongoing shared path works between Mourea Bridge and Ōkere Falls. Traffic management will be a combination of shoulder closures and stop/go as required to carry out the works safely. Allow extra time. More information(external link).

Eastern Bay of Plenty

SH35 Motu River: 24/7 single lane access has been reinstated, with traffic signal control in place, along with a 30km/h temporary speed limit. There will be periods where traffic is stopped at each end to allow works to take place across the full road width. Works will continue until mid-October. More information(external link).
SH35 Chipseal: Chipsealing continues near at the eastern end of the BOP region. Work will take place during the day, between the hours of 7am and 7pm, Monday to Friday. When works are taking place stop/go traffic management and a reduced speed limit will be in place. The majority of this work is expected to be complete by mid-November.
SH30 Awakeri to Whakatāne: Pavement and utility site investigation work along SH30 between the SH2/SH30 and Shaw Road/SH30 intersections continues. Works will be undertaken across a number of sites, at night or during the day (depending on the specific task), under stop/go traffic management and a temporary speed limit.
SH2 Waimana Gorge: Road rehabilitation continues just south of Fraser Road. Stop/go traffic management and a temporary speed limit will be in place until late-October.
SH2 Wainui Road to Ōpōtiki: Service relocation work between Pohutukawa Drive and Paerata Ridge Road continues. Stop/go traffic management will be in place during the day when this work is taking place. This work is expected to be complete by the end of the month. More information(external link).
SH2 Waioeka Gorge: A section of the Waioeka River is in close proximity to the road edge. A shoulder closure is in place, and remedial works have commenced.
SH30 Whakatāne: Resurfacing work between SH2/Gateway Drive/Phoenix Drive and Whakatāne Landing Bridge continues, and will be complete by late-October. Stop/go traffic management and a temporary speed limit will be in place on SH30 between 6pm and 6am Sunday to Thursday; during this time Coastlands residents will have a signposted single direction detour. Temporary speed limits will remain in place during the day when there are uneven surfaces.

Tairāwhiti Gisborne/Hawke’s Bay

SH35 Kopuaroa: The site remains under stop/go traffic management and a temporary speed limit of 30km/h at all times. Main improvement works to realign the highway onto more stable ground are underway. Delays are to be expected. More information(external link).
SH35 Chipsealing: Chipsealing continues between Ruatoria and Pōtaka until Tuesday 25 October. Work will take place during the day, between the hours of 7am and 7pm, Monday to Friday. When work is taking place road closures will be in place, expect delays. More information(external link).
SH2 Esk River Bridge: The bridge over the Esk River on SH2, north of Napier, has been reduced to a 30km/h temporary speed limit due to recent assessments identifying the bridge does not have capacity for sustained increased travel demands. Overweight vehicles are required to reduce their speed to 10km/h within their own lane, or to follow the restriction on their permit if it is lower. More information(external link).

Manawatū-Whanganui

SH4 Auraki Stream Road Retreat: Work to retreat the road away from a slip adjacent to the Mangawhero River is currently underway and will continue into 2023. For the duration of the works the road is reduced to one lane with traffic control operating under traffic signals. Works are generally undertaken away from the road, however there are occasions where traffic signals are used to keep drivers safe from hazards, with delays of up to 10 minutes.
SH4 Te Oreore slip: Following a slip in 2019, a temporary road is in place at Te Oreore, with a 30km/h temporary speed limit in place.
SH4 Upokongaro to Raetihi: Crews continue to clear material from numerous slip sites. Traffic is generally reduced down to one lane past these slip sites during working hours. At sites 150m north of Burrell Road and 3km north of Burrell Road, SH4 is reduced down to one lane due to underslips with priority give way and 30km/h speed limits in place. At Aberfeldy, 1km north of Parihauhau Road, speed is reduced to 50km/h due to an underslip compromising the edge line of the northbound lane.

Waikato

East Waikato

SH25 Coromandel: The Coromandel state highway chipseal programme continues, and crews will be on the network until late November. Expect delays due to multiple sites under stop/go traffic management, one-way detours and/or temporary speed limits.
SH25 Hikaui Bridge: From Tuesday 25 October the bridge will be closed to all traffic from 8pm to 6am, Sunday to Thursday, for an expected period of up to four weeks. This closure is necessary while essential and significant maintenance work is completed. During this time the bridge will be open to traffic during the day with temporary traffic management and a speed restriction of 10km/h in place. More information(external link).
SH2 Karangahake Gorge: Road resurfacing will be undertaken from Sunday 16 October, between 8pm and 5am each night. Stop/go traffic management and a temporary speed limit will be in place on Sunday 16 October, and the road will be closed each night from Monday 17 to Thursday 20 October. Plan ahead, as the detour route via SH27/SH24/SH29, adding more than two hours to travel time. More information(external link).

Central Waikato

SH1 Putaruru: From late October resurfacing will take place between the Oraka Stream Bridge and Central Street. Between the hours of 7pm and 5am, Sunday to Thursday nights, the road will be closed; light vehicles can detour via Domain Road and Harris Road, heavy vehicles will need to use SH5/SH30. Work is expected to take two weeks to complete.
SH1 Ātiamuri: Safety improvements on a 4.5km stretch of SH1 between Maroa Road and Tram Road, south of Ātiamuri, are continuing. A 50km/h temporary speed limit is in place through the site and stop/go traffic management with a 30km/h temporary speed limit may also be used at times between 9am and 3pm Monday to Friday. More information(external link).
SH1 Desert Road: The road is down a single lane near Tree Trunk Gorge Road, due to washouts. Temporary traffic signals are in place along with a temporary speed limit; road users are reminded to comply with the traffic management on site. Repair work is underway; there will be short periods of stop/stop traffic management to move machinery to/from site. At a later date there will be day-time road closures as part of this work, more details to follow.

West Waikato

SH1B Puketaha: SH1B east of Hamilton is closed at the southern end of Telephone Road while options for its long-term future are investigated. Detour via Holland Road, Waverley Road and Seddon Road. More information(external link).
SH1 Waikato Expressway - Ngāruawāhia Section: Night-time closures will be in place between the Taupiri and Horotiu interchanges for safety barriers to be installed ahead of safety and remedial works starting on this section of expressway. The closures will take place from late-October for 10 nights (excluding Friday and Saturday nights) in each direction. The detour for light vehicles will be via Great South Road, over-weight and over-dimension loads will need to use SH1B. Following these closures we will use a combination of lane closures, contraflow and additional night-time closures to complete the remainder of the work.
SH3 Te Awamutu: Resurfacing of SH3 Sloane Street, between Vaile Street and Fraser Street, will commence Sunday 16 October. Between 6pm and 6am the road will be closed, with a detour via Golf Road and Cambridge Road. Work is expected to take three nights to complete.
SH39 Te Kowhai: Chipsealing takes place between Te Kowhai and Whatawhata next week. Stop/go traffic management and temporary speed limits will be in place.
SH30 Kōpaki: A localised drop out between Kōpaki Road and Ohirea Road means temporary traffic signals are in place to control traffic, along with a temporary speed restriction of 30 km/h. Repairs are complete at a slump near Kōpaki Bridge; however, this site remains under a temporary speed restriction. Truck drivers are reminded that the existing Kōpaki rail overbridge has a maximum weight limit of 6 tonnes. If compliance with the load restriction doesn’t greatly improve, the potential risk to both road and rail users will force us to close the road to all traffic. The detour route between Maniaiti/Benneydale and Te Kuiti is via Kōpaki Road and SH4. More information(external link).
SH4 Taumarunui: Following storm damage, a section of road north of Taumarunui, between the State Highway 43 intersection and Okahukura Bridge Road is under stop/go traffic management, controlled by traffic signals. Enabling works have commenced, and plans for the long-term repair of this road are currently being designed.

North Waikato

SH1 Hampton Downs: The first stage of works to make the Waikato Expressway safer at Hampton Downs is nearly complete, with overnight road closures taking place on Tuesday 18 October (southbound) and Wednesday 19 October (northbound) to remove most of the temporary barriers. A detour route via Rodda Road, Whangamarino Road and the Te Kauwhata interchange will be in place. Further work on the on and off ramps will take place over the next few months. More information(external link).
SH1 Mercer: Due to multiple maintenance activities northbound lanes will be closed between Mercer and Pokeno on Tuesday 18 October, between 9pm and 5am. One lane of traffic will be available in either direction using the southbound lanes. The Mercer Road intersection will have traffic management in place to guide traffic through the area.

Taranaki

SH3 Piopio: A slip has the road down to one lane between Mangarongo and Paekaka Roads, which is being controlled by traffic signals. Delays of 5-10 minutes are expected. More information(external link).
SH3 Awakino: A slip south of Awakau Road has the road down to one lane controlled by traffic signals and a 30km/h temporary speed limit. There are various other slips in the gorge that are currently not affecting traffic, however drivers are asked to drive with caution, and expect delays at the single lane section.
SH3 Te Ara o Te Ata: Mt Messenger Bypass: Stop/go controls are operating daily, with delays of up to 15 minutes expected. The lane closure allows for Bypass enabling works. More information(external link).
SH3 Uruti: Road reconstruction is underway between Uruti Road and Mimi Road, with work expected to be complete mid-November. Stop/go traffic management and a temporary speed limit are in place; delays are expected. More information(external link).
SH3 Waitara: Northbound light vehicle traffic is being detoured via Waitara to enable stormwater works to be carried out for Te Ara Tūtohu Waitara to Bell Block safety improvements. Heavy vehicles and all southbound vehicles continue to use SH3 under stop/go traffic management and a 30km/h speed limit. Delays of between 5-10 minutes can be expected. Sealing work is being completed next week, before the detour is lifted, with stop/go remaining on SH3. More information(external link).

For up to 48 hours following completion of chipseal sites, a 50km/h temporary speed limit will be in place until the road is swept and line marking reinstated.

The above information is accurate at the time of release. Many of the above works are dependent on a number of factors, particularly weather, and may be postponed at short notice. For up-to-date information on road works, traffic, detours and delays, motorists are encouraged to visit the Waka Kotahi Journey Planner website.