Weekly update No. 14 Manawatū Gorge closure

This weekly update, 20 October 2017, is produced by the NZ Transport Agency to provide the latest information about the impact of the Manawatū Gorge closure and the development of an alternative transport corridor linking Manawatū, Hawke’s Bay and northern Wairarapa.

You are receiving this update because you either registered or you are on our stakeholder list. If you no longer wish to receive these updates, please unsubscribe.

We’re keen to hear your feedback and answer any questions you may have.  Drop us a line at manawatugorge@nzta.govt.nz and we will get back to you within 3 working days.

Social Pinpoint online feedback

Shortlist assessment begins

It was great to see so many of you at our public open days to discuss the options we’ve identified for further detailed investigation and design.  Thank you for taking the time to provide us with much useful information.

The shortlisted options will be assessed against a range of factors, including: transport performance, cost and constructability, culture and heritage, landscape and visual, social impacts, and environmental effects.

A reminder that we are seeking your feedback on the shortlisted options by Wednesday 25 October.  You can use our Social Pinpoint online tool or our feedback form which, together with a map of the shortlisted options and more information, can be found on our website at www.nzta.govt.nz/manawatu-gorge.  Or you can email us at manawatugorge@nzta.govt.nz. Your feedback will help inform further investigation of the shortlisted options.

Pahīatua Track

Maintenance work on the Pahīatua Track continues, as well as frequent inspections to ensure we are responding quickly to issues.  Extensive maintenance work is planned to take place in the next few weeks.  We will have traffic management in place so we do apologise for any delays you may experience during these works.

Planned renewals work, including resurfacing, will take place over the coming summer months. Over the next few weeks we will provide more information about the type of work and how it may impact your travel across the Pahīatua Track.

Work in Ashhurst

Minor surface levelling on Mulgrave Street will start next week, in preparation for an asphalt surface to be laid. We are in discussions with Palmerston North City Council for the maintenance work along Wyndham Street – this work will be carried out once we have completed the work in Mulgrave Street.

We are keen to hear from more residents about the new speed cushions installed on Worcester Street.  Your feedback on the effectiveness of the cushions will help us determine their suitability for use in other Ashhurst streets.  Please let us know via email manawatugorge@nzta.govt.nz what your experience has been and if you feel these speed cushions are successful in reducing vehicle speed and vibrations.

Saddle Road

The extensive maintenance on Saddle Road to repair and improve the road surface is progressing. We apologise for any delays you may experience – unfortunately traffic management is necessary to get this work done safely in the shortest time. This work and partial road closures will extend into next weekend is weather dependent so the closure days may change. We will provide daily updates on the electronic message boards.

Further upgrades to Saddle Road continue with works taking place at night under lane closures between 6pm and 6am. The work sites will be under stop/go traffic management and we will provide daily updates on the electronic message boards. Please check out our Facebook page www.facebook.com/nztacni/ for the latest news and updates on the works.

Update on temporary bypass of Ashhurst & Woodville realignment

We continue to work as quickly as we can towards the development of the Ashhurst bypass and Woodville realignments.  We appreciate this is a pressing concern for many of you and we will provide you with information as soon as there are new developments.

More information

For more information on the SH3 Manawatū Gorge 2017 closure, contact us at manawatugorge@nzta.govt.nz

Visit our website www.nzta.govt.nz/manawatu-gorge