Community update

31 March 2022

Making our city more resilient, connected and vibrant

Welcome to our March issue of the Community Update for the latest news about the RiverLink project.

Planting for flood protection

People say they prefer tree-lined, rather than rock-lined, riverbanks – where possible.

Widening of the river channel and tree planting along the riverbank at Belmont on Te Awa Kairangi/Hutt River has been carried out, as part of the RiverLink project and the Hutt Valley Floodplain Management Plan (a 40-year blueprint to protect the most densely populated floodplains).

This work will help retain the natural meandering of the river and protect communities and the state highway after heavy rainfall. The willow trees will also protect natives as they establish themselves. Over time, the willows will be removed, leaving native plants to help protect the riverbank.

If you’ve got a couple of minutes, take a trip down the river with Jeff Evans from Greater Wellington’s flood protection team. His video provides a good explanation about how planting will help improve our defences against flooding.

Be part of the Southend Business Group

If you’re already a ‘friend’ or a member you’ll know what the Southend Business Group is all about. If not, take a look at the website sebg.org.nz – any southend business or building owner/manager, as well as their staff, can ask to join!

The group was created to promote businesses and activities in Lower Hutt CBD's southend, with regular meetings to discuss projects – including RiverLink – held.

The group will likely hold another discussion about RiverLink on Wednesday 27 April - details will be confirmed on their website and ours during April, so keep an eye out if you're interested.

RiverLink container open to visitors

The RiverLink container has been open to visitors every Saturday during March and will be open the first two Saturdays of April (weather permitting) in the Riverbank carpark near the market, from 8am to 2pm. So come along, look at the information on display and ask questions.

There’ll be live music playing from 11am to 1pm - so bring your lunch, stay a while and enjoy being by the river.

During previous visits to the container people were most interested in finding out about the new Melling interchange, plantings by the river, the start date for construction, details about the flood banks, access to the new bridges and what will happen to the current Melling station.

The frequently asked questions page on our website has more information on these topics.

Melling interchange – how it’ll work

The new Melling interchange will be a fully grade-separated interchange, like the Haywards or Dowse interchanges to the north and south of Melling. Grade-separated in this case refers to a local road that will be built over State Highway 2. The key difference is that there will be traffic signals for vehicles moving onto and off the connecting local roads and interchange, rather than a roundabout.

The images below may give you a better idea of what the proposed new interchange could look like.

If you have more specific questions about the new interchange, take a look at the 'Transport' section on the frequently asked questions page on our website.

Frequently asked questions

We've put together the following answers to some commonly asked questions.

RiverLink is a combination of three separate but interdependent projects, delivered as a single programme of works that will transform Lower Hutt.

It's a partnership between Hutt City Council, Greater Wellington, Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency, Taranaki Whānui ki te Upoko o te Ika and Ngāti Toa Rangatira to deliver flood protection, the revitalisation of Lower Hutt’s central city and Melling transport improvements.

More information

More information on the RiverLink project is on our website (issues of all our Community Updates are also on this site in the News section).

Website: www.riverlink.co.nz

If you have a question, send our team an email and we'll get back to you as soon as we can:

Email: riverlink@gw.govt.nz