An extraordinarily wet start to December is throwing up challenges for crews working on state highways in the Bay of Plenty, Waka Kotahi says.
The state highway network across the Bay of Plenty has a significant programme of road rebuilding and resealing this summer, with over 175 lane kilometres to be completed by March 2023.
Crews made good progress early in the season, with the majority of resealing on SH35 completed, along with a number of asphalt resurfacing sites.
However Roger Brady, Bay of Plenty System Manager for Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency says the early progress is a distant memory, with the region battered by relentless wet weather in recent weeks.
141mm of rain was recorded across a 24-hour period at a weather station north of Katikati, compared to 136mm for the month of December 2021. This follows on from a November that received three times as much rainfall compared to the same time the previous year (328mm vs 97mm).
“The weather is presenting us with a number of challenges,” Mr Brady says.
“When rain falls with such intensity, frequency and volume, we are forced to react to events on the network, such as potholes, slips or flooding. Previously these events were isolated to winter periods, however we are seeing more and more the impacts of a changing climate and associated changes in weather patterns.
“Reacting to these events pulls our team away from the vital renewal work they have planned at this time of year. Even when the weather is dry the road structure is still saturated, which prevents any pavement repairs from taking place.
“The result of this is that we have over 80% of our Western Bay/Tauranga state highway renewal programme to complete in the first quarter of 2023. This is traditionally a time when there is additional traffic on the road, with people travelling for their summer holidays. We recognise that there an increased number of roadwork sites will create additional travel time, however we will look to minimise this as much as possible.
“We want everyone to have safe and enjoyable holidays. Plan ahead before your journey using our Journey Planner and associated Holiday Journeys map via journeys.nzta.govt.nz. Please drive to the conditions - whether it’s the weather, the road you’re on, the time of day or the volume of traffic on the roads. Be patient when driving this summer so everyone can relax and enjoy the holidays together,” says Mr Brady.
Renewal activity ceases on the state highway network from midday Thursday 22 December, returning from 8am Wednesday 4 January. During this time contractors will have crews on call to respond to weather events and emergencies as required.
