Ngā pātai auau - frequently asked questions
What is proposed for the Waihoehoe Road upgrades?
The project team have now completed the developed design for the Waihoehoe Road upgrades. The upgrades are on a 400m section of Waihoehoe Road between Great South Road and Kath Henry Lane as well as work on connecting roads.
The project aims to make it easy for people to reach the new Drury Railway Station and housing development to support long-term growth in the region. Key features of the design include:
- additional lanes from 2 to 4 and up to 6 lanes on Waihoehoe Road Bridge
- signalised intersections at Waihoehoe Road/Great South Road and Waihoehoe Road/Kath Henry Lane
- a new, higher bridge over the North Island Main Trunk Line. This will also support the Papakura to Pukekohe rail line electrification and future four tracking of the rail corridor
- capacity for future bus lanes
- connections for walking and cycling from Great South Road to the new Drury Railway Station
- new signalised crossing on Great South Road as part of the KiwiRail Drury Station project.
Why is a new Waihoehoehoe Bridge needed?
The existing Waihoehoe Road bridge is not high enough to meet KiwiRail’s design standards or wide enough for future four-tracking.
The new bridge will support the Frequent Transit Network (FTN) with additional lanes from 2 to 4, and up to 6 lanes. This will enable the extra vehicle and bus lanes as well as walking and cycling facilities needed for the growing population.
Why is the new bridge going on the northern side of the existing Waihoehoe Road bridge?
Building the new bridge north of the existing one has less impact on utilities and better supports rail development and future land use. There is more space to make the bridge taller and wider to meet absolute minimum clearance between the top of the tracks and underside of the bridge, and for future rail four-tracking.
Moving the new bridge to the south would have a huge impact on the land designated for the new Drury Railway Station, which is already under construction. The closer the bridge is to the station, the greater vertical clearance required which would lead to a significant cost increase to level Great South Road on the western side of the rail line.
A further benefit of building the new bridge to the north is that it ties in better with the existing roads on either side, both vertically and horizontally (Great South Road, Norrie Road, and Waihoehoe Road). It allows the new signalised intersection to meet geometric design standards for road approach grades, vertical curves, and minimum sight distances to ensure safety for all road users.
Finally, building on the northern side also means less impact on traffic because it will allow the existing Waihoehoe Bridge to remain open during construction.
For more information on this, you can have a look at the Assessment of Alternatives submitted as part of the Auckland Transport Designation 1840 Jesmond to Waihoehoe West FTN Upgrade (refer to pages 118 – 140 of the document).
What is happening to the Drury Town Centre Shops?
Auckland Transport has now purchased the property at 232 Great South Road on which the Drury village shops are located, which is needed for construction of the Waihoehoe Road upgrade project.
Auckland Transport will continue the current lease arrangements with the shop tenants until at least 30 September 2025.
After that date, the leases can be extended on a month-to-month basis to enable the shops to remain open for as long as possible before construction starts.
What works have already happened?
We have now set up the site in preparation for construction of the Waihoehoe Road Upgrade. These enabling works will provide a safe work area for the construction team to work near the rail tracks while minimising impacts to the rail network.
Construction hoarding walls have been installed along both sides of the rail tracks near Tui Street for a distance of 70m. The hoardings were installed early because they can only be built during periods when trains aren’t running, during the Christmas Period at the end of 2024 and over the school holidays in April 2025.
Will I still be able to access Tui Street?
During construction of the Waihoehoe Bridge access to the community facilities on Tui Street will be provided through a temporary accessway through 232 Great South Road. This accessway will be converted to a rain garden and new footpath connection to Tui Street when works are completed.
Once the new Waihoehoe Road Bridge has been completed, access to Tui Street will be available left-in/left-out to Waihoehoe Road. New traffic lights at Kath Henry Lane will be phased so vehicles are able to make a U-turn, enabling vehicles exiting Tui Street to turn around on Waihoehoe Road and travel west.
What is the current programme for work on the Waihoehoe Road upgrade?
The project team are preparing to lodge a consent application with construction expected to begin in late 2025. Enabling works have been completed so that there is a safe work area available for when construction starts. Construction is expected to take 2-3 years to complete.
Will Waihoehoe Road remain open during construction?
Construction of a new bridge adjacent to the existing bridge enables access to Waihoehoe Road to remain open throughout the construction period. Once the bridge is installed there will be some temporary road closures as the new bridge is connected to the existing road network. Disruption will be minimised as much as possible with the majority of these works occurring at night. The community will be notified of any potential road closures in advance so that they are aware of any journey delays.
