No. 4 Road bridge

What’s happening now? (27 June)

The new bridge is officially open!

A dawn blessing was held this week to mark the occasion, and the Bailey bridge was removed a couple of days later.

Thanks to everyone who helped make this happen, including Beca, Fulton Hogan and Council staff.

Special thanks to Waitaha and Tapuika iwi for their support throughout the project, and in particular Luke Whare for his involvement and blessing of the new bridge.

Also to the residents of No. 5 Road (a private road off No. 4 Road) for allowing us to use their accessway during the Bailey bridge installation and while the new bridge was being built.

And to Peter Bennett for allowing Fulton Hogan to use his land as a depot site, and Stephen McManaway for the use of his packhouse to host residents' meetings.

The site came with its complexities, such as difficult ground conditions on the southern approach, working in a confined space and some unhelpful weather, but the team worked hard to keep things moving and we're excited to have this vital link back in place for the local residents and businesses.

While the bridge is open and in use, we still have some finishing touches to do, so you can expect some temporary traffic restrictions at a later date, in particular to allow the final surfacing to be applied.

Thanks again to everyone for your mahi and support.

17 June

Road closure: Overnight on Wednesday 18 June, we will be laying asphalt on the southern side of the bridge. The road will be closed from 5pm until 5am the following morning, while this work is taking place.

No. 5 Road access onto No. 4 Road will be closed, and No. 5 Road traffic will need to detour through Manoeka Road during this time.

Recent works: Over the past week we finished building up the road surface on the northern side, ready for sealing. The new handrails have been installed on the bridge, and the base for the traffic barrier is complete. On the southern side, we've started digging out and prepping the area for the next stage of road construction. Work in the stream is moving along too, after having to pause it last week with the heavy rain.

9 June

We are getting close to opening the new bridge to traffic, and removing the temporary Bailey bridge. The following road closures will be in place over the coming weeks.

Road closure 11-18 June: No. 5 Road

From Wednesday 11 June to Wednesday 18 June, we will be carrying out pavement works on the southern side of the bridge.

During this time, No. 5 Road access onto No. 4 Road will be closed - and No. 5 Road traffic will need to detour through to Manoeka Road.

We will endeavour to have No. 5 Road access onto No. 4 Road available outside the site working hours of 7am and 5pm.

Road closure 25 June: No. 4 Road and No. 5 Road

We are planning to remove the Bailey bridge on the evening of Wednesday 25 June, starting at 8pm, through to 5am the following morning.

No. 4 Road will be closed overnight, with no detour access available. No. 5 Road access onto No. 4 Road will also be closed. (Emergency services access will always be maintained.)

We will have cranes set up on both side of the bridge that will lift the Bailey bridge onto a transporter for removal, and the road will open as soon as possible after the cranes are removed.

Please note, from Monday 23 June, traffic will be diverted onto the new bridge, so we can start dismantling the Bailey bridge.

After the bridge opens to traffic, we will still have some road works to complete, including pavements, traffic barriers and signs, road marking, abutment protection works and landscaping.