Road contractors across the Waikato and Bay of Plenty state highway network are completing the last renewal sites of the 2021/22 season, which has seen a significant programme of work delivered under testing circumstances.

With fewer active worksites on the go, contractors are turning their minds to winter maintenance, as well as planning their activity for next summer, says Cara Lauder, Waikato System Manager, Maintenance and Operations.

'We have another ambitious programme of work planned for next summer, and our planning for this is already underway,” says Cara.

'Contractors completed over 550km of road renewals this summer, which is about 10 per cent of the entire network across the Waikato and Bay of Plenty region. We are aiming for a similar amount of work, if not more, next summer.

'However, the winter period is just as important to us as the summer, as we need to keep our roads operating through all seasons to ensure people, products and places are connected.

'Over the winter period our contractors will be out in all conditions to monitor and maintain the network. This includes proactive and reactive maintenance to keep roads in good condition, before any permanent repairs take place during the warmer, drier months.

'While there may be fewer roadwork sites on the network now, over winter roads may be closed or have stop/go traffic management due to slips, dropouts or other weather induced events. We do recommend road users check the Journey Planner before heading out to ensure they have the latest up-to-date information on road conditions,” says Cara.

Check the Waka Kotahi Journey Planner website (journeys.nzta.govt.nz) before you travel for up-to-date information.

Bay of Plenty

Tauranga

• Takitimu North Link Stage One: Wairoa Road will have stop/go in place for trucks crossing, a diversion road is live with a speed limit of 30km per hour. Shoulder closures will be in place at Minden Road, Cambridge Road and SH2 northbound (just past the Te Puna roundabout). At Cambridge Road narrower lane widths and a reduced speed limit of 30km/h on the northern lane will be in place. On SH29 Takitimu Drive Toll Road a reduced speed limit of 80km per hour will be in place while there is work occurring behind the barriers.

Tree felling will be undertaken on SH2 between Te Puna Road and Loop Road, on Saturday May 21, between the hours of 9am and 12pm. Stop/go and stop/stop traffic management will be in place, along with a 30km/h temporary speed limit. More information.

• SH29 Tauriko: Resurfacing work will take place from Monday May 23 for four nights, between Gargan Road and Redwood Lane. Stop/go traffic management will be in place between 7pm and 5am each night, with a temporarily reduced speed limit.
• SH29 Tauriko West: Investigation works to provide the information needed for the next steps of the Tauriko West enabling works are underway and expected to take place through to early-June 2022. Works will mostly take place overnight between 7pm and 6am, with generally one active work site at any time. It is expected that most works will be completed over one to two nights at each location. Traffic management will include shoulder and lane closures. More information.
• SH29 Omanawa River Bridge: Over-weight and over-dimension permits are suspended until late-May, while bridge strengthening work takes place. A temporary speed limit of 30km/h is in place at the bridge, to reduce vibrations from vehicles while work takes place under the bridge. More information.
• SH2 Bay Link: SH2 at the Bayfair roundabout will be partially closed from 7pm on Friday May 27 to 7am Saturday May 28 to allow six further beams across the third span of the Bayfair flyover to be lifted into place. Detours will be in place. If this work is impacted by weather or other unforeseen issues, it will be carried out on the next available night. More information.

Outside the partial closure hours stated above, an eastbound lane closure of SH2, between Concord Ave and the Bayfair roundabout, will in place on Thursday May 26 and Sunday May 29 from 7pm to 7am the next day to allow for barrier installation and removal.

• Te Puke Highway: Stop/go traffic management and a temporary speed limit is in place until Friday June 3 while the Kaituna riverbank is stabilised. The worksite is near the Te Puke Highway/Pah Road intersection. Delays are expected, especially during peak PM travel. Waka Kotahi is encouraging Tauranga-bound traffic to use the Tauranga Eastern Link Toll Road and is waiving westbound lane tolls for a limited time. Until Friday June 3, Westbound lanes will be toll free, weekdays Monday to Friday, between 4pm-7pm only. More information.

Western Bay of Plenty

• SH2 Waihī to Ōmokoroa: Safety improvement works continue at four active sites: between Athenree Road and Tanners Point Road, Rea Road / Tetley Road intersection, Westbank Drive to Wright Road and Apata Station Road to Esdaile Road. Minor delays are expected.

Tetley Road is temporarily closed between SH2 and Rereatukahia Pā Road until late-May. Detour routes are available via Marshall Road, and only add a couple of minutes to the overall travel time. Please follow detour signage. More information.

Rotorua

• SH33 Te Ngae Junction to Paengaroa: Safety improvement upgrade work continues on the section north of Pareteiro - Sun Valley Curve passing lane. This includes widening the shoulders, installing a wide centreline and installing roadside safety barriers. More information.

Waikato

East Waikato

• SH25 Coroglen: Strengthening work on the Waiwawa River Bridge (SH25) in Coroglen continues and is expected to be complete in the second half of 2022. More information.

Central Waikato

• SH1 Atiamuri: Safety improvements on a 4.5km stretch of SH1 between Maroa Road and Tram Road, south of Ātiamuri, have commenced. Outside peak travel periods stop/go traffic management and a temporary speed limit of 30km per hour will be in place. More information.

West Waikato

• SH1 Cobham Drive: Hamilton City Council's Ring Road – Wairere Drive extension project continues, and is expected to be completed by late-2022. The Wairere Drive extension, from Cambridge Road to Cobham Drive, is now partially open, with road users able to turn left-in or left-out to/from Cobham Drive. More information.

• SH1B Puketaha: SH1B east of Hamilton is temporarily closed at the southern end of Telephone Road. Detour via Holland Road, Waverley Road and Seddon Road. More information.

• SH1 Maungatautari: Safety improvements are taking place between Karapiro Road and Maungatautari Road and are expected to be complete by late-May. Stop/go traffic management will be in place along with a temporary speed limit. More information.

• SH39 Mangaotama Stream Bridge: The bridge will be closed to all traffic from June 13 to June 26 to allow the bridge deck and beams to be replaced. There is a local road detour while through traffic is encouraged to use SH3 and SH1 through Te Awamutu and Hamilton. More information.

• SH30 Kopaki: A localised drop out between Kopaki Road and Ohirea Road means temporary traffic lights are in place to control traffic, along with a temporary speed restriction of 30 km/h.

North Waikato

• SH1 Hampton Downs: Resurfacing between Pokeno and Hampton Downs continues, with work taking place between 9pm and 5am. Works are ongoing until late-May. At times SH1 will be down to one lane, with either stop/go traffic management in place, or a one-way detour in place for southbound vehicles. Temporary speed limits will be in place when works are being completed. More information.

Taranaki

• SH3 Te Ara o Te Ata: Mt Messenger Bypass: Stop/go controls are operating daily until mid-June, with delays of approximately 15 minutes expected. These measures enable a lane closure to allow for Bypass enabling works.

On Sunday May 22 the road will be closed from 9am to 5pm. This is a full closure of the road, with no access throughout the day. This closure is needed to recover a truck that has rolled over the bank. More information.

Some of the above works are weather dependent and may be postponed in the case of poor weather. For up-to-date information on road works, traffic, detours and delays, motorists are encouraged to visit the Waka Kotahi Journey Planner website (journeys.nzta.govt.nz).

Waka Kotahi thanks motorists for their patience while we complete this essential work to keep the state highways safe and resilient.

Plan ahead for a safe, enjoyable journey. Keep up to date with:

• Traffic updates: journeys.nzta.govt.nz/traffic

• Facebook: facebook.com/NZTAWaikatoBoP
• Twitter: twitter.com/WakaKotahiWaiBP
• Journey planner: journeys.nzta.govt.nz
• Phone: 0800 4 HIGHWAYS (0800 44 44 49)