O Mahurangi – Penlink

31 May 2024

Whangaparāoa side of the Wēiti River looking towards Stillwater.

April - May construction update

The O Mahurangi project team continues to move at pace, with an impressive 413,000 cubic metres of earth moved during this earthwork season. Work is progressing on the bridge structures, as well as continued work on ground improvements, stream works, building access tracks and culverts, plus prepping for the construction of State Highway 1 and East Coast Road bridges.

Once complete, the Road of Regional Significance will support economic growth and productivity, reduce congestion, improve safety, support housing development, and provide a more resilient roading network to the Whangaparāoa Peninsula.

The Wēiti River Bridge has also reached a significant point in construction with the drilling of 2 piles that are 3 metres wide by 48 metres deep - that’s a long way down! Both of the 18 metre long steel casings have been installed into each pile hole. Check out photos and more details in the story below.

The Whangaparāoa earthworks team started on a large area on the eastern bank of the Wēiti River. They made the most of the good weather and moved 29,000 cubic metres of material last month. Because of this material movement, we can now see across to the other side of the river where the Wēiti River Bridge is being built (pictured above) - a visual of connectivity that the project will provide.

For work to continue throughout the winter months, we apply to Auckland Council every month for what is called ‘winter work approvals’. The team received the approvals for winter work in May, meaning the project will continue to work at pace constructing a safe and efficient alternate route for the surrounding communities. Every beam laid and every approval granted is another step towards O Mahurangi - Penlink connecting communities. 

We want to remind people that O Mahurangi is a live construction zone and it’s really important for people’s safety that they do not access the site without prior approval.  If would like to see up to date visuals of site, please check out our latest drone flyover and aerial photos.

The Duck Creek Road Bridge beams are lifted into place on a beautiful morning in Stillwater.

Duck Creek Road Bridge beams lift

When it’s finished the Duck Creek Road Bridge will provide the Stillwater community with a safe and efficient connection from Duck Creek Road over to the other side of the bridge.

The beams for the Duck Creek Road Bridge were delivered to the worksite in the early hours of the morning before the lift. We're using 10 beams in total - 5 beams that are 31 metres long, 2.2 metres high, and weighing 66 tonnes, and 5 shorter beams that're 16.5 metres long and 2.2 metres high. The beams will be joined together to create the new connection.

These beams (I-type section girders) are unique as they allow the bridge to be built without central piers, thus being a more efficient bridge design. An impressive 600-tonne crane lifted the beams into place.

Left: plants at Long Bay ready for offset planting. Right: planting of the first tree by Adina Brown – archaeologist, who ran the pre-start explaining what to do for any archaeological findings.

Offset planting in Long Bay Regional Park

We are committed to enhancing native biodiversity through the project’s restorative planting and by promoting nature-based solutions.

One way we are doing this is through offset planting. Offset planting is planting trees or vegetation in a different location to mitigate any environmental impacts from the project.

Starting this month and going through to September, 140,000 plants will be planted at Long Bay Regional Park as the first stage of our offset planting efforts. To date we have planted over 26,000 plants.

There will be a variety of native plants to enhance the native biodiversity of the regional park. Be sure to stop by Long Bay Regional Park to check it out!

Wēiti River Bridge cage going in along with the concrete trucks lining up.

Wēiti River Bridge concrete pours

Impressive concrete pours for 2 piles, or bridge foundation support columns, at the Wēiti River Bridge took place in May. This work required 360 cubic metres (about 60 truckloads in total) of concrete per pile.

These pours are a huge undertaking for the team, as once the concrete pour starts, it cannot stop until it is finished. This means there’s a lot of coordination between various teams and suppliers to manage the process.

The team successfully completed the first pile concrete pour in early May, with a second pour completed mid-May. Pictured above you can see the concrete trucks lined up ready for their turn.

These are some of the largest marine piles we have ever constructed - 3 metres in diameter and 48 metres deep, requiring 70 tonnes of steel reinforcement and 360 cubic metres of concrete!

The project team presenting to Business Whangaparāoa.

Project updates across the community

Last month we presented project updates to 2 community groups - 60s Up Movement Hibiscus Coast Branch and Business Whangaparāoa.

Through these engagements, we were able to meet new community members and provide updates on construction, traffic, design, and other topics. We appreciate the time they took to meet with us. Please reach out to us if your group would like a project update presentation.

Constables on site.

Local constables visit O Mahurangi

Members of the local Community Policing team Brett Hanley, Mahina Martin, Sam Webb visited our site this May.

After last visiting 9 months ago, they were impressed by the noticeable progress made on site. Here they can be seen standing where the new road will be.

More information

For more information on the O Mahurangi – Penlink project, email us at omahurangi@nzta.govt.nz or call us on 0800 7365 465.

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