2. Progress on Resolution link

Laying a rock foundation for the Resolution Extension is almost complete. Construction teams have removed most of the topsoil and replaced it with rock so the road can be built on top in the spring. Drainage teams will be back forming swales and ponds when the wet weather eases up.

At the Resolution Interchange, dump trucks are laying sand when the weather allows.

3. Safer curves at Osborne Road Bridge

Building the Osborne Road Bridge also included a realignment of the road at either end to remove potentially dangerous S-bends. The photo below shows the new, gentler curves and barriers at either end of the completed bridge.

4. It’s our longest…

The bridge we’re building over the Mangaonua Gully is our longest at 150 metres. Bored piles extend 50 metres into the soft gully soils, and we’re now building the first centre columns. This is the only bridge on the project with steel beams.

5. Roundabout taking shape

The new roundabout at the intersection of SH26-Morrinsville Road and Ruakura Road is now sealed. This large roundabout is constructed from multiple layers of bitumen laid 180mm deep to resist the pressures of heavy, turning vehicles. More bitumen is coming for the roundabout approaches, and then Ruakura Road will be finished and sealed through to Vaile Road.

6. Running trucks in winter is a balancing act

In the height of summer, we have 40 or more 6WD dump trucks hauling sand and soil up and down the expressway construction corridor. This winter, we have approval to push on with earthworks, but the weather dictates how much we can achieve.

More information

For more information on the Hamilton section of the Waikato Expressway, contact us at waikatoexpressway@nzta.govt.nz or phone us on 0800 322 044.

Visit our website www.nzta.govt.nz/hamilton