View online
Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency

SH1 Tīrau to Waiouru maintenance

We're back!

6 August 2025

 

Upcoming works on State Highway 1 (SH1):

  • East Taupō Arterial: Accelerated structural asphalt work. Sunday 17 August for 11 nights. Stop/go traffic management, between 7pm and 6am, Sunday to Thursday (no weekend work).  Expect some delays.
  • Taupō to Tūrangi: Road rebuilding. Starting Monday 1 September at Waitahanui. Stop/go traffic management during the day for around 2 weeks, then traffic travelling in both directions under temporary speed limits. Expect some delays.
  • Tīrau: Works start Sunday 14 September, weather dependent. The work site is south of the business area and SH1/Rose Street, Hillcrest Street intersection to south of the SH1/SH5 roundabout. Nighttime road closures will be required. Detour and traffic management being finalised.

All work is weather dependent.
 

 

In this issue:

  • We're back
  • Taupō to Tūrangi
  • Drop-in session Taupō to Tūrangi
  • East Taupō Arterial
  • Tīrau
  • It's road maintenance season
  • Thank you for completing our survey
 

 

We're back!

SH1 Tīrau to Waiouru Accelerated Maintenance Project is back for season 2 but unlike the bingeable Netflix series you hope will be extended into a third season, our second season will be final, but it’s a blockbuster.

Spoiler alert: We will not be using full 24/7 road closures to complete work in season 2 but we will require some nighttime only closures on SH1 between Tokoroa and Ātiamuri, on the Desert Road and at Tīrau. The schedule for this and detours are still being finalised and we will update as soon as we have the details.

While we aren’t using 24/7 closures, you should still expect disruption and some delays on SH1 near our work sites, particularly between Taupō and Tūrangi where we are starting on Monday 1 September and have the most work to complete.

In season 1 we rebuilt approximately 49km of SH1 between Tīrau and Waiouru which is why we needed all those road closures. This season we have the final road surface to complete on 5 sections of SH1, including the Desert Road. We also have complete road rebuilds and maintenance between Taupō and Tūrangi, and on the edges of Tokoroa and Tīrau townships. By the end of the project, we will have rebuilt 66km of SH1, bringing these areas up to a significantly higher standard requiring less road works in these areas in the future.
 


 

During the off-season we've been preparing for season 2, including identifying where any utilities are before we start digging. This is the team at Waitahanui, between Tūrangi and Taupō, which is where we will start work on Monday 1 September.
 
 
 

We have also been locating services, and clearing out culverts at Tīrau. We're planning to start work here on Sunday 14 September. This work will be done using a night closure. We are still confirming the traffic management details and the detour and will let you know as soon as that is confirmed. 
 
 
 

Taupō to Tūrangi

Advanced notice of a planned closure to complete the Taupō to Tūrangi section received significant feedback from the community in February this year. We relooked at the options and considered the concerns, significant length of the detour, and the number of residents living within the zone. We decided not to carry out 24/7  closures in this zone in season 2 due to the impact on the community, businesses and freight.   

Work between Taupō and Tūrangi will be completed under a combination of “contraflow”, that's traffic travelling in both directions under a temporary speed limit, and using stop/go. We expect delays to SH1 traffic during this work because of the volume of vehicles per day travelling through this section of SH1 (approximately 6,950 per day) and the tailback effect of stop/go traffic management.  We’re working through the schedule with the contractor to minimise delays where possible.
 

 

Taupō to Tūrangi

Between Taupō and Tūrangi we are carrying out road rebuilding at 4 work sites starting on Monday 1 September and finishing in mid-December, weather dependent.

The areas of road being rebuilt are:

  • Waitahanui passing lane (1.4km)
  • Hatepe Hill passing lane (2.1km)
  • Kiko Road intersection with SH1 (0.4km)
  • Motuoapa southern end (1km).

Our contractor is also creating right turn bays at the SH1 and Wairau Ave, Pākira Place intersection at Waitahanui.

Work is currently planned to start at Waitahanui on MOnday 1 September. We will use stop/go traffic management during the day for around 2 weeks, then traffic will be travelling in both directions under temporary speed limits. Expect some delays.
 

 

Drop-in sessions. Taupō to Tūrangi

Come and visit us at the Tūrangi Craft Market Saturday 16 August, anytime between 8.30am and 1pm where we will have a stall and can answer any questions you may have about our works between Tūrangi and Taupō this season.

We are also having drop-in sessions on Friday 15 August at:

The Hungry Trout. 267, State Highway 1, Tauranga Taupō.
10am – 1pm

Licorice Cafe. 57 State Highway 1, Motuoapa.
3pm – 6pm
 

 

East Taupō Arterial

You may remember from last season; we return to complete the final surface of the road 12 months after the initial rebuilding. We have 2.5km of final surface to complete on the East Taupō Arterial (ETA) and this is currently scheduled for February 2026.

With the recent heavy rain there has been some deterioration on the ETA that wasn't part of our rebuild last year. It needs immediate attention, so we are accelerating asphalt work planned on the ETA starting on Sunday 17 August, weather dependent. This will be done at night between 7pm and 6am under stop/go traffic management for approximately 11 nights. Work is Sunday to Thursday (no weekend work). If the weather is bad, it will be done on the next available fine night. We will also still be laying the final surface on last season’s work in February so you might see us back on the ETA a few times. Please plan for some delays in this area. Check journey planner before you travel.
 

 

Tīrau

We are completing road rebuilding and maintenance from the southern end of Tīrau township and business area to the SH1/SH5 roundabout. 

Works will start at the southern end of the town and business area, past the SH1/Rose Street, Hillcrest Street intersection and go south to the SH1/SH5 roundabout, including all roundabout lanes.

It is expected to start on Sunday 14 September and will require a nighttime only closure to complete the volume of work we need to do in what is a narrow road width, particularly under the Tīrau rail bridge. We are finalising the schedule including the detour for this nighttime only closure and will update you as soon as we have more details. 

This work is happening across 1.15km and includes improving drainage, culvert replacement, road rebuilding and maintenance work. 
 

 

It's road maintenance season

T2W is not the only show on the road this spring and summer. This time of year is always busy for road works. When the weather is warm and dry it’s perfect for resurfacing and rebuilding roads to ensure quality results. We’re hoping the weather gods play ball.

While T2W has a big programme, NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) is also delivering our usual summer maintenance programme across the Waikato and Bay of Plenty. This includes 50 road rebuild and resurfacing sites from the Coromandel Peninsula to Waiouru. We know road works are an inconvenience. Please bear with us and check out our journey planner to see how your travel might be impacted.
 


 

Thanks for completing our survey

Thank you to those that completed our survey in June. 79% of you rated our communications as good to excellent and 84% of you rated the roadwork quality as good to excellent but we know there’s always room for improvement.

You told us newsletters; our website and social media are the preferred ways you like to hear about our works so we’re focusing on sharing all our updates on those channels this season. You also told us information about closure dates, progress updates and information on upcoming works is the most important to you. On that basis we will try to keep the impact of our works front and centre and give you the important information first, peppered with content that shares a bit about why and how we do the work.

Most of you also want between 2 to 4 weeks' notice of upcoming work so we’re trying to stick to that, but things do move rapidly around here.

Other interesting feedback included that there was majority support for future road closures if they improve quality (60%) or speed up completion (53%) and 65% of respondents agreed the closures last season were worth it. Most respondents also accepted detours up to 45 minutes, with 51% indicating this as the maximum tolerable travel time.

We’ll ask you again at the end of this season how we did and what we can do better.
 

 

More information
 
 

For more information on the SH1 Tīrau to Waiouru maintenance, contact us at SH1Waikato@nzta.govt.nz

Visit our website nzta.govt.nz/t2w
 

  About     Careers     Privacy  
 
  Connect with us on social media  
 

You received this message because you signed up to receive project updates on the SH1 Tīrau to Waiouru maintenance project on our website or provided your details as part of our public engagement activities. If you no longer wish to receive these updates, please feel free to unsubscribe.

Unsubscribe  |  Subscribe to updates

© 2025 NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi, all rights reserved
Te Kāwanatanga o Aotearoa New Zealand Government