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Ōtaki to north of Levin project update – April 2020

During the COVID-19 lockdown all members of the project team are working from home to prepare the programme of works that will improve safety and resilience of the Ōtaki to north of Levin transport corridor.  This work will also increase transport choice for the area’s growing population.

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The preferred corridor for the new Ōtaki to north of Levin highway

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Design work on new highway continuing

In the current environment, face-to-face meetings have given way to ‘virtual’ meetings and telephone conversations, and the project team is using a range of remote working technology to support working from home. 

Our January newsletter let you know that the Government’s New Zealand Upgrade Programme will provide $817m of funding to deliver the new Ōtaki to north of Levin highway.  Since then our team on the new transport corridor has been developing the plan through to construction, which now includes considering the impacts of the evolving COVID-19 situation. 

Work is also progressing on refining the road and shared path location within the preferred corridor.  We're building on the strong foundation of the earlier phases of the project, including the valuable feedback that we’ve received from the community over recent years.

We look forward to sharing more details with you over the coming months and we’re currently reviewing our engagement approach, looking at how we can best engage with you through these challenging times.

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Example of drilling rig

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Checking ground conditions for the new highway

Preparations are underway for geotechnical testing within the preferred corridor for the new highway.  These investigations will include drilling boreholes up to 30m deep, to collect soil and rock samples, and penetration tests to evaluate the resistance of the ground.

What we learn about the soil and rock in the area will help the planning and design of the new road.

While the drilling and other testing isn’t able to happen with the current working restrictions, we’re preparing to go ahead as soon as we can.

What the testing will involve?

Nearly 50 tests will be carried out. The test sites do not represent where the exact route is likely to go as we haven’t determined that yet. The locations are generally evenly spaced to provide information about soil and rock conditions throughout the area. Some locations are selected for easiest access to avoid utilities, for example. To help us understand foundation requirements, other locations have been positioned near areas where significant structures or constraints are expected, such as around rivers and gullies.

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Answering your questions on the new Ōtaki to north of Levin corridor

We’ve heard from people with great questions about the project over the last couple of months.  You may be interested in what we heard and the answers, and please get in touch with us if you have any other questions:

Does the New Zealand Upgrade Programme funding announcement mean that we now know where the road and intersections will go?

Not yet. We still need to complete further investigations and design work is underway to identify where the new road will ultimately sit within the preferred corridor. This will include considering the locations of interchanges and connections.  The preferred corridor is typically 300 metres wide. The final design width of the highway is likely to be between 60 metres and 100 metres, with additional width for interchanges and new local road connections. 

When will we know more about the location of the road?

The exact location of the road can’t be confirmed until the formal designation process for the new route is complete.  We will, however, have a better idea of the route within the preferred corridor in the coming months.  We’ll be sharing the proposed route alignment with property owners and then the wider community around mid-2020, and inviting feedback on the proposal.  All going well, we will then be looking to confirm the preferred alignment and location of intersections around late 2020. 

What’s happening when on the project?

Key dates for the project were part of the New Zealand Upgrade Programme announcement, including that construction would start in 2025 and be completed in 2029.  The project team is working on developing the other key milestones for the project, and we’ll be letting you know about these once they’re confirmed.

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Summary of safety improvements being investigated

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Safety improvements on the existing highway

Our team is also investigating safety improvements for the existing state highway.  These are important not only now, while the road is a state highway, but also beyond that when the current highway will be a significant local road.

Last December we provided an overview of the safety improvement elements that we’ll be investigating (you can see the map on our website). 

Community feedback has fed into our current work on safety improvements on the existing road.  Initial scoping and design is underway now on investigations including proposals for:

  • Stretches of median barrier on SH1, from where the PP2O expressway will end through to the intersection with SH57 - excluding Manakau and Ōhau, where safety improvements have recently been put in place
  • A roundabout at the SH1 / SH57 intersection
  • Edge barrier and wide centre lines, to provide greater separation between the traffic lanes, on SH57 from the SH1 intersection to Heatherlea East Road
  • A roundabout at the SH57 / Queen Street intersection.

Before designs are finalised, we’ll be sharing our plans with the community including details such as proposed start and finish points for barriers and turnaround locations.  We’ll be inviting your feedback so the next stage of detailed design can be fine-tuned.  We will also ask for your thoughts about appropriate speeds on the roads.  Keep an eye on these newsletters for details.

We’re a couple of months away from completing this work and will let you know in our next newsletter when you can expect to see the initial designs.

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More information and support

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Visit our website www.nzta.govt.nz/o2nl to find about our work in the corridor or check out:

For more information on the Ōtaki to north of Levin project, contact us at o2nl@nzta.govt.nz

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