While the wet weather over the past few weeks, and months, has kept maintenance crews busy dealing with surface flooding, slips, fallen trees, debris and road closures, repairing potholes has continued to be a priority.

Waka Kotahi Regional Manager of Maintenance and Operations, Jaclyn Hankin, says the persistent problems with potholes have been made worse in recent weeks.

“Water is the main contributing factor creating potholes, so we would expect to see more appear during periods of heavy rainfall like we’ve had in the past fortnight.

“Unfortunately it is also not a surprise to see some of the newly-repaired potholes reopening soon after repair, such as on SH2 between Gisborne and Napier, with the sheer amount of water pressure the road is under.

“It is absolutely essential potholes are repaired and filled as quickly as possible, for the safety of all road users.

“In the weeks since the most recent destructive rainfall, we have had crews out daily working to fill those potholes on the state highways on the East Coast, including on State Highway 2 north and south of Gisborne; SH5 Napier-Taupō and SH2 through Central Hawke’s Bay.”

“We will keep our pothole crews out over the coming weeks, including part of this long Matariki weekend, specifically focused on repairing those holes during winter, until longer-term remedial work can begin again in the warmer months. If you’re travelling through the areas our crews are working on, please drive to the conditions and expect possible delays.

“We know there’s a lot still to do and we can’t thank communities and road users enough for their patience, support and understanding.

“While our road crews are out daily working to fill these holes, we’re also encouraging road users to report the damage they see – call 0800 4 HIGHWAYS to report issues,” says Ms Hankin.

The prohibition notice, issued under Section 28 of the Railways Act 2005, will have the effect of terminating the Te Huia rail service at Papakura from this afternoon. KiwiRail will operate buses to replace trains for the service within the Auckland Metro area.

KiwiRail has reported two ‘SPAD A’ (Signal Passed at Danger Category A) events this year involving the Te Huia passenger service between Hamilton and Auckland.

A SPAD A event is defined as an incident when the train driver has failed to obey a red signal and has entered a section of track where there is the potential for conflict with another rail service. Evidence shows that SPAD A events can create a significant risk to public safety and are potential precursors to a collision. The most recent SPAD A incident involving Te Huia was recorded on the morning of Monday 10 July.

Waka Kotahi Director of Land Transport Neil Cook says the action has been taken in order to maintain safety on the rail network.

“We understand that this will cause disruption for people using this service, and we don’t take decisions like this lightly, but we consider that prompt action is crucial to ensure the ongoing safety of everyone using the Auckland Metro rail network.

“KiwiRail has assured us that they are taking urgent action to prevent further incidents. The prohibition order will be lifted by Waka Kotahi after KiwiRail has provided satisfactory evidence of the measures taken to ensure that the safety risks have been adequately mitigated,” Mr Cook says.

The trees have become a hazard to road users, following the weekend’s weather event, as the heavy rainfall has made the ground around them unstable.

It’s estimated around 200 truckloads of trees will need to be removed during each closure.

Specialist contractors will initially be working onsite next Monday (17 July) and Tuesday (18 July) to remove the trees. They’ll need to return to site the following Monday (24 July) and Tuesday (25 July) to repeat the process.

During the closure, the trees will be felled and removed from the road – some will be mulched onsite, while others will be taken away to be mulched elsewhere.

A section of SH2 between Whatatutu Road and Makaretu Road will close during these days (between 8.30 am and 4.30pm­) to accommodate the safe removal of the trees.

Waka Kotahi Hawke’s Bay / Tairāwhiti System Manager Martin Colditz says the road will remain open outside these hours.

“In addition to keeping the road open outside working hours, there will be a daily convoy (lasting one hour, between midday and 1pm). The convoy will leave Whatatutu Road at midday. The convoy will depart Makaretu Road in the opposite direction at 12.30.

“Stop/go traffic control will remain in place following the closures for the safety of all road users.

“This is a crucial stretch of road for communities and for the freight industry – we want to minimise disruption as much as possible.”

The Transport Recovery: East Coast Alliance (the Alliance) is a collaboration between Waka Kotahi, KiwiRail, Fulton Hogan, and the existing maintenance contractors for the two regions; Downer and Higgins. The Alliance will lead the design and delivery of physical works on the state highway and rail networks over the coming years.

Waka Kotahi Acting Group General Manager Transport Services Robyn Elston says a lot of work has gone into setting the Alliance up for success since the interim agreement was signed in April and one of the key aspects of the Alliance is the East Coast first philosophy regarding how work will be delivered. 

“The East Coast has a strong pool of hard-working, skilled, and experienced contractors, consultants, and businesses who understand both road building and the East Coast whenua.

“Locally owned and operated contractors will be prioritised when it comes to delivery of the physical works. There are considerable opportunities for these businesses and the East Coast first approach gives them the confidence to invest in their people, in their machinery, and in their region.”

Where possible, local suppliers will also be used to support the regional supply chain recovery, while also reducing potential carbon emissions.

The Alliance will also undertake the ongoing maintenance and operations requirements of the state highway network in Te Tairāwhiti and Te Matau a Māui – Hawke’s Bay, continuing the recovery efforts that have been ongoing since February 2023. 

The Alliance is expected to be in place for several years.

“KiwiRail is committed to working with its Alliance partners to deliver a resilient recovery and rebuild effort for the people of the Hawke’s Bay region,” says Programme Director Daniel Headifen.

“Since shortly after the cyclone hit, KiwiRail teams and our contractors have been out on the ground working to repair, reinstate and reopen key rail lines across the region. The formation of this Alliance is another key step in that process.

“We are already using local sub-contractors, where we can, and are committed to continuing that effort as the rebuild progresses.”

Robyn Elston from Waka Kotahi says people were given another reminder of the impact that climate change and increasing severe weather events are having on the East Coast late last month. 

“We need our transport networks to be resilient to the impacts of climate change, to ensure that communities can stay connected now and into the future.”

“Following Cyclone Gabrielle, the Government topped up the National Land Transport Fund by $250 million to cover the cost of emergency repairs and earmarked a further $275 million for this work in Budget 2023.

“This funding has allowed both Waka Kotahi and councils in affected areas to get on with repairs to both state highways and local roads to reconnect communities as soon as possible.

“Cyclone Gabrielle has shown these are more than just roads to our communities.

“Today’s signing is a considerable milestone, but there is still lots of work ahead to ensure the state highway network reflects current and future needs and aspirations for connections across the East Coast.”

Traffic management will be in place on State Highway 2 between Masterton and Carterton next week as night works for median barrier works resume.

The works will see the final section of central median barrier installed between Hughes Line and Chester Road.

The section between the Wiltons Rd roundabout and the turnaround facility is nearly finished, and the section between Norfolk Rd and Wiltons Road has already been completed.

The installation is part of the Masterton to Carterton Safety Improvements Project. The centre-line barriers are an essential safety feature and reduce the risk of people being killed or seriously injured in head-on crashes by up to 80 percent. These improvements will make this section of State Highway 2 much safer for motorists.

Waka Kotahi appreciates the work will create some noise and be disruptive to residents. However, we also must balance this impact against the need to minimise daytime traffic delays for drivers using State Highway 2 through the project area. Contractors will make every effort to ensure disruptions are minimised.

Works details

• Contractors will be conducting night works from 7 pm, Monday, 17 July.
• Works are expected to take four nights to complete, but timeframes may differ due to changing circumstances.
• The hours of work will be 7 pm to 6 am
• There will be stop/go traffic management in place

State Highway 2, Masterton to Carterton, Safety Improvement Project

Update 11 July 2023

The scaffolding for pipe repairs at the Uretara Bridge was fully installed overnight on Monday 10 July – a day earlier than expected. So there will be no stop/go single laning overnight tonight 11 July.  

All going to plan, the water main will be repaired Wednesday 12 July in the morning, with no traffic delays expected.

The scaffolding is planned to be removed on the same day with stop /go single laning in place from 7.00pm to 12.00am on Wednesday 12 July.

The Western Bay of Plenty District Council is carrying out urgent repairs on the watermain at the Uretara Bridge.

Due to the urgency, work needs to get underway tonight 10 July from around 7pm to install scaffolding. Scaffolding will continue tomorrow night 11 July.

The nights of Wednesday 12 and Thursday 13 July will be used for pipe repairs under stop/go.

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency advises road users to expect delays.

If the pipe deteriorates further – urgent day work may be required to begin repairs sooner.

The Metservice has issued a heavy rain watch for eastern Marlborough, south of Ward. Another alert is in place for Wairarapa, including the Tararua District and the eastern hills of Wellington. The warnings run until 9 pm tonight.

The wet weather is already affecting State Highway 1 between Ward in Marlborough and Waipara in North Canterbury, with reports of localised flooding along the route.

Drivers must drive to the conditions and be prepared for hazards. Please watch your speed and following distances and turn your headlights on if visibility is poor.

Heavy rain increases the risk of slips and flooding, and roads may be closed at short notice. Please check road and weather conditions before you travel.

Waka Kotahi Highway Conditions

Metservice Weather warnings