Celebrating another milestone - Waihī to Ōmokoroa safety improvements

Travelling between Athenree Road and Tanners Point Road is safer for everyone with safety improvements rapidly approaching completion on this 5.8km section of SH2.

With the bulk of the work finished, and crews now completing the last small bits of work, people will only see minor traffic management as they travel through the site.

Improvements have been widening the centre line, side barrier installation to protect road users from hazards on the side of the road, and intersection improvements including left and right turn bays. These improvements are all part of the safe system approach and proven to reduce the risk of crashes.

This is the eighth of 10 sections to be completed under the safety improvements project, with only two sections remaining – Section Five (Tanners Point Road to Kauri Point Road) and Section 11 (Esdaile Road to Ōmokoroa Road).

Earlier this year we announced that the safety of this stretch of SH2 will be boosted further with the installation of flexible median barriers and additional intersection upgrades to provide safe turnaround points, this phase of the project will continue to 2025, you can learn more in this newsletter, below.

First of six roundabouts near completion

The first of six new intersection upgrades to be built as part of the safety improvements project is nearly complete with a new roundabout at Rea Road and Tetley Road built over the past year.

This phase will see five more roundabouts constructed to provide safe turnaround points ahead of flexible median barriers being installed. Roundabouts can reduce the number of people killed or seriously injured by 60%, because they reduce the chance of head on, and side impact crashes and vehicle speeds are lower.

There are many stages to building a roundabout, including service relocation, earthworks, drainage, construction, surfacing and sealing, and when you’re working on a busy highway all this takes place while keeping lanes open and traffic moving. We appreciate people’s patience while this important work happens.

How rural roundabouts save lives – a case study

Takitimu North Link: September edition coming soon

In the September edition of the project Contractor’s Newsletter, we share the latest news on what’s happening on site, and a photo diary feature showing progress at sites of three major bridge structures underway as part of the project. Subscribe to the newsletter here.

Tree removal will close SH2 Te Puna early October

The need to swiftly remove a tree next to the road means a section of SH2 will need to close for two days early next month. The closure, between the SH2/Te Puna Road/Minden Road roundabout and SH2/Te Puna Station Road intersection, will be in place between 5am and 4pm, on both Saturday 1 and Sunday 2 October.

The ‘root’ cause of the issue lies with a separate tree that fell previously, disturbing the embankment and putting this tree at risk. We acknowledge that the timing is not tre(e)mendous, given this weekend is the start of the school holidays.

The detour for all southbound vehicles, including heavy vehicles, is via Te Puna Road and Te Puna Station Road, and the northbound route is the same, in reverse order. Under normal circumstances this will add less than five minutes to travel time.

If the weather conditions are not suitable (high winds mean we won’t be able to do this work safely) then the work will need to be postponed to the following weekend.

Read more

Head on crashes are the top cause of death and serious injury on this section of SH2

Why flexible safety barriers will be installed on SH2

Flexible road safety barriers are the safest barrier if someone hits them, and a cost-effective infrastructure treatment that will save lives.

75% of people who die or are seriously injured on our rural roads have had a head-on collision or have run off the side of the road, and flexible road safety barriers are a key tool to improve these outcomes.

How they work

When you hit a flexible barrier, the high-tension wire cables flex, slowing your vehicle and keeping it upright. They’re designed to absorb the impact, protecting you and others in the vehicle, and ensure your vehicle isn’t deflected into another traffic lane.

Their flexibility also makes them safer for motorcycles, compared with traditional, solid W-barriers, which don’t move when hit. International evidence suggests flexible barriers can reduce the number of motorcyclists killed and injured on our roads by 50 percent.

Where they will be installed

About 14km of flexible median barrier will be installed along SH2 between Tetley Road/Rea Road and Pahoia Road/Esdaile Road. Six roundabouts will be placed for every 1.9km to 3.8km providing safe turnaround points and resulting in much safer right turns for those who live along SH2. The approximate locations are shown on this map.

We are currently developing the detailed design for these improvements, which includes an independent safety audit. When this is complete the locations of the flexible median barrier will be confirmed, this is likely to be early-2023. While these changes will require some patience and understanding, it makes the road safer for everyone.

We will be sharing more information on Facebook in coming weeks and months, follow the page to learn more. Read frequently asked questions here.

Chip sealing starts October – Athenree to Bethlehem

SH2 between Athenree and Bethlehem is one of the region's significant work sites for chip sealing this year. Work begins mid-October and is expected to continue up to Christmas. The work will be carried out at night (7pm-6am) under Stop/Go traffic management, and reduced speed limits will be in place for 48 hours to allow seal to bed in.

Given the volume of roadworks taking place this year, we acknowledge that at times there will be considerable disruption to travel along this section of SH2. Before leaving for your destination check the Journey Planner for the most up to date information.

View this short video with tips for driving on chip seal

State Highway 2 / Ōmokoroa Road intersection early investigation works

Early investigation works for the $43 million SH2/Ōmokoroa Road intersection upgrade are underway. Contractors will be working intermittently at the SH2 intersection and along Ōmokoroa Road, until November completing topography surveying, service location and geotechnical testing. Traffic management, such as shoulder closures and temporary speed reductions, may be in place at various times to allow this work to be completed safely. While work is designed to have minimal impact on motorists, some minor delays may be experienced at times. This work will provide important information required to complete the detailed design of the upgrade.

In July, Western Bay of Plenty District Council secured $38.292 million from the Kāinga Ora-managed Infrastructure Acceleration Fund, for this project. Waka Kotahi is contributing $5 million to the upgrade, and supplying land worth $1.49 million.

Building our future - Cameron Road upgrade reaches one-year mark

It has been one year since construction work along Cameron Road began in September 2021! One year on and the new facilities are beginning to take shape, making Cameron Road safer, more attractive and providing more ways to travel along this important through-route and destination. This work is due to be completed late 2023, until then, all road users should be extra careful in the area. You can learn more about this Tauranga City Council project here. 

What are those ponds for?

There are many controls we have in place to ensure we are taking care of the Taiao (natural environment). On the Takitimu North Link project there will be about 19 Sediment Retention Ponds (SRP) constructed across the project, one of these is pictured below.

When it rains, SRPs capture runoff from the site and treat it to help clear the water up before discharging it back out into the environment. You can see the water is filtered through the pond in the Forebay end which is then clean by the time it reaches the other end of the pond.

We use special equipment to check the clarity of water leaving our sediment retention ponds. The below shows the water quality leaving our sediment retention ponds (glass on the left) compared to on the right the water coming into our sediment retention ponds.

More information

For more information on the SH2 Waihī to Tauranga Corridor project, contact us at bopprojects@nzta.govt.nz

Visit our website www.nzta.govt.nz/Waihi2TGA