Hawke's Bay recovery

5 May 2023

Tēnā koe,

We’re thrilled to announce that after three months of hard mahi, we will soon be able to reopen State Highway 2 between Napier and Wairoa. Work to restore the route is ahead of schedule and the road will now open to the public on Sunday 14 May at 7am. The road will be open from 7am to 6pm each day.

This stretch of SH2 suffered the most damage of any of our region’s roads, with almost 100 sites needing repair after Cyclone Gabrielle. We are grateful to our crews on the ground who know how crucial this route is to communities, whanau and businesses and have worked tirelessly to make it safe to travel again.

Looking ahead, we are working on a strategic resilience recovery approach for the region, which covers SH2, SH50 and SH51. It also includes SH5 from Glengarry to the SH2 intersection, with the rest of SH5 already part of similar work. The work will lay out a range of options for the future of these highways, with the aim of ensuring our state highway network is resilient to major weather events. Work on a programme for Gisborne and Wairoa is also underway and we aim to have both completed by early July.

Highway snapshot

Latest information as at 5:00pm, Friday 5 May. Highway access maps are available on the Waka Kotahi website. 

State Highway 2

• Napier to Bay View OPEN
• Bay View to Tangoio RESIDENTS ONLY
• Tangoio to Tūtira RESTRICTED ACCESS ONLY
• Tūtira to Waikare Bridge OPEN
• Waikare Bridge CLOSED 
• Waikare Bridge to Wairoa OPEN

State Highway 5

• OPEN

State Highway 38

• OPEN

State Highway 50

• OPEN

State Highway 51

• OPEN

State Highway 2

Three months on from the devastation of Cyclone Gabrielle, State Highway 2 will reopen between Wairoa and Napier next Sunday (14 May) at 7am. The road will initially only be open during daylight hours, 7am to 6pm, for safety reasons.

Work to restore access along the cyclone-damaged stretch of highway has progressed faster than anticipated, including the construction of the Waikare Gorge Bailey bridge. Contractors have also been working on a number of other damaged sites, including at Devil’s Elbow, as well as clearing landslips and debris, and other works to make the road safe.

Regional Manager of Maintenance and Operations Jaclyn Hankin says the progress is testament to the hard work and commitment of everyone involved.

“Restoring this access has been an absolute priority for Waka Kotahi. We know how much reopening this section of road will mean for people and we’re thrilled to be able to get it open earlier than expected.”

Over the next week, teams will be connecting the Bailey bridge to the highway and completing final repairs and paving. We are also finalising what traffic management may be in place to help keep everyone safe and allow our crews to continue repairs to the road.

The new Bailey bridge will be blessed by Ngāti Pāhauwera and Maungaharuru-Tangitū Trust next Saturday, before the entire route reopens to the public on Sunday. 

Please be aware that the road will look very different to the way it did before the cyclone, allow for significant delays when travelling, and expect closures in the event of heavy rain. The Bailey bridge will be open to 50MAX vehicles less than 23 metres long and 2.55 metres wide.

Image: The Bailey bridge built at Waikare Gorge

Improved resilience at Mōrere

Our crews have successfully installed a temporary culvert on State Highway 2 at Mōrere, north of Nūhaka. It replaces one damaged in Cyclone Gabrielle and will strengthen the road’s resilience to heavy rain. We thank the communities along SH2, including Wairoa, for their understanding during the two-day closure of this section of the highway.

Image: Work taking place on the Esk River Bridge on State Highway 2

Esk River Bridge strengthening

Overnight closures are now in place for the Esk River bridge north of the State Highway 5 Napier – Taupō as strengthening work is underway.

Strengthening work began on April 30 and will take approximately three weeks to complete. The bridge is closed overnight Sunday to Thursday at 9pm each night, reopening at 5am each morning.

Access for emergency services will be maintained at all times.

Outside the overnight closures, the existing 30 km/h speed restriction will apply, with possible closures required at times under stop/go traffic management. While the temporary speed limit can be frustrating, it's there for your safety. Please respect the temporary speed limit.

Thanks for your patience as we make the state highway safer and more resilient.

Read more on the Waka Kotahi website. 

State Highway 5

We’re working to keep traffic flowing on State Highway 5, with teams making steady progress on restoring sections affected by underslips and scouring back to two lanes.

Temporary works are underway at three sites damaged by scouring from the Mangakōpikopiko Stream, to protect the highway until we can put a permanent fix in place. A design for the reconstruction of the road at Eland, where there has been a large underslip, is being finalised and teams will begin work next week.

We are working through the design for a solution to a large scour at Te Haroto. Work to repair this site and install new culverts is now likely to begin mid-June.

The major slip between Glengarry and Te Pōhue is progressing well, and we expect to have the road back to two lanes by the end of July.

Image: Work underway on State Highway 5

State Highway 51

Work to improve the safety of SH51 at Awatoto will now begin with the installation of flexible median and side barriers from Monday 15 May.

We will be monitoring peak traffic flows while barriers are being installed to enable planning of the next phases of the project including the possibility of a temporary roundabout.

During the construction period for this first stage, which is expected to be complete by late July, there will be traffic management in place, with crews working between 9am and 4pm Monday to Friday.

Because of the width of the highway, we are able to keep two lanes of traffic open and we anticipate minimal impact on traffic flow.

This project is an important priority for Waka Kotahi, alongside cyclone recovery work. The work beginning in May is stage one of the project. Construction of stage two is expected to begin later this year with side and median barrier to be installed between Awatoto Road and Ellison Street.

In 2024, a new permanent roundabout will be constructed at the SH51/Awatoto intersection.

Read more about the SH51 safety improvements on the Waka Kotahi website or in our media release.

Watch: Project Manager Jacob Laird talks through the safety improvements ahead for SH51

Debris cleared from Waitangi Bridge

Crews have cleared the debris from beneath Waitangi Bridge between Napier and Clive, and replaced part of the barrier between the walkway and the road that was damaged in the cyclone.

Bridge engineers have installed scaffolding below the bridge to ensure safe access to the electronic monitoring equipment installed on the sides of the bridge, which will enable future inspections to be carried out remotely. The scaffolding is not needed to support the bridge in any way and it remains structurally safe.

Key facts about flood-damaged vehicles

Recent weather events across the North Island means a significant increase in the number of water damaged vehicles.

Water damage can affect a vehicle’s electronic and mechanical safety systems, and simply drying out a vehicle is not enough from a safety perspective.

We strongly encourage people not to attempt to fix vehicles themselves, or to drive or on-sell a water damaged vehicle. If your vehicle is insured, contact your insurer. If your vehicle isn’t insured, we recommend you have a technician inspect it.

You can learn more about water-damaged vehicles here.

What’s been your biggest challenge in the response to Cyclone Gabrielle?
The biggest challenge in the early response was the connection between Napier and Hastings. That was vital to reconnect family and friends, enable essential supplies to reach Napier, and allow critical workers like doctors and nurses to reach their workplace. The other major challenge was that we had no communication at all to begin with, which made coordinating works extremely difficult.

Has there been a particular highlight for you?
Every time we were able to announce we had restored a state highway connection has been a great highlight.

How do you feel about the future of the Hawke's Bay transport network?
The event highlighted the areas that we have to concentrate on in the future to ensure our network becomes more resilient to these events. So no time to rest, let’s move on!

Keep up to date

It’s a challenging time to travel around Hawke’s Bay. Please plan ahead and drive to the conditions.

Traffic updates: Hawke’s Bay
Facebook: Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency - Hawke's Bay and Gisborne
Twitter: Waka Kotahi CNI
Journey planner: Hawke’s Bay
Phone: 0800 4 HIGHWAYS (0800 44 44 49)

More information

For more information on the recovery from Cyclone Gabrielle, see the dedicated Hawke’s Bay Cyclone Recovery section on the Waka Kotahi website. You’ll find all the latest updates, FAQs, and information on the road ahead, all in one place.

You can also contact us at hawkesbay.response@nzta.govt.nz

Subscribing to this newsletter

As Hawke’s Bay recovers from Cyclone Gabrielle, this e-newsletter is designed to keep you updated on our progress, any changes and things you need to know. You are receiving this e-newsletter today as you have previously registered your interest in matters affecting our state highway network in Hawke’s Bay. Please share it with others who may find the information useful or, alternatively, you can unsubscribe.