SH1 Piarere to Taupō

Project update

30 August 2023

Drop-in sessions on next week

We want to make the state highways near Tirau safer. There are various road design improvements which can be made, including installing flexible central and side barriers.

We are holding two drop-in sessions in Tirau to discuss safety improvement plans for SH1 from Piarere to Tirau and also on SH5 from Tirau to Tarukenga.

When
Wednesday 6 September: 3pm-6pm
Saturday 9 September: 10am-12 noon

Where
Tirau Memorial Hall, SH1 in Tirau.

We are interested in the views of the people who live, work and drive on these roads – so call in for a chat and/or fill out a feedback form. You can also email us your feedback – waikato.projects@nzta.govt.nz

SH1 Piarere to Tirau

We are looking at safety improvements on the 9.7km section from just north of Horahora Road towards Tirau.

Work would include road widening and the installation of flexible central and side safety barriers.

Flexible median barriers put a barrier between you and an oncoming vehicle. If someone loses control or drifts across the centreline, the result isn’t a deadly head-on crash as the median barrier catches them. Flexible safety barriers are very effective, and they are already making a difference around New Zealand’s roads. Check out the video here to see how barriers save lives.  

The proposed concept design has gaps in the barrier for four turnaround locations at Horahora Road, Paparamu Road (western end), Puketirau Road and Paparamu Road (eastern end).

The central barrier will impact on the ability for most residents and businesses to turn right out of, and into, their properties. They can expect an additional 2-3 minutes of driving time to safely access their properties if they are coming from a direction that would have ordinarily involved a right turn.

The barrier will extend (with no gap) past Momona Road, meaning vehicles will only be able to turn left into and out of this road. To mitigate this, turnaround locations are proposed at Puketirau and Paparamu Road which will add around 1 minute of additional driving time for people accessing Momona Road.

We are proposing to keep the existing passing lane between Puketirau Rd and Momona Road and convert the existing passing lane east of Paparamu Road (eastern end) to a slow-vehicle bay. This will make the right-turn movement into Paparamu Rd much safer.

Next steps in this project are to develop a detailed design, engage with mana whenua, land owners and other stakeholders to finalise the design, conduct negotiations for any land purchase and confirm construction funding.

Here’s how a turning bay works   – this video is of the recently completed one at Hydro Road, Karapiro.

SH5 Tirau to Tarukenga

A feasibility study investigating potential improvements was completed in early 2022. We worked with mana whenua and councils and their feedback helped us to identify a preferred option.

We are currently developing the detailed design for the 2.5km section between Whites Road and Harwoods Road – the SH28 overlap.

The safety measures proposed include:
• roundabouts at Harwoods Road and Whites Road
• flexible median barrier
• widening the road shoulders where necessary to accommodate the barriers and give drivers space to pull over in an emergency.

Our teams are carrying out site investigations and seeking feedback on the proposed design. The information we receive will be considered as we progress the design for this section.