Marlborough state highway planned roadworks

Saturday 18 October to Friday 24 October

17 October 2025

Kia ora and welcome

Kia ora,

Welcome to this week's issue of the Marlborough state highway planned roadworks update.

This weekly newsletter will keep you informed about what’s happening across the region’s state highways so you can plan ahead.

Please feel free to share this newsletter with whānau and friends, anyone can sign up to stay informed.

The information outlined below is current as at 12:15pm on 17/10/2025.

Labour weekend and Marlborough Anniversary weekend

All roadworks will pause over the upcoming long weekends.

On Labour weekend (next weekend), contractors will shut down sites from midday Friday 24 October, returning early morning Tuesday 28 October.

On Marlborough Anniversary weekend, contractors will shut down sites from midday Friday 31 October, returning early morning Tuesday 4 November.

Long-term sites may have ongoing restrictions in place. Please check Journey Planner for the latest updates on road conditions before you travel.

SH1 Picton to Christchurch

Due to the number of work sites on State Highway 1 south of Picton (as outlined below) please allow up to 40 minutes extra travel time between Picton and Christchurch. This is especially important for drivers with Picton ferry bookings.

State Highway 1 Wairau Road, Picton

Our team will begin resurfacing a 350 metre section of road between Dorset Street and Kent Street on Sunday 19 October. Stop/go traffic management will be in place between 6pm and 6am until Friday 24 October. Please plan ahead for delays of up to 10 minutes during this time. A 30km temporary speed limit will be in place while this work is undertaken and will remain in place outside of work hours. A short detour will be in place for Kent Street and Dorset Street residents who need to access State Highway 1 during work hours. This resurfacing work involves removing the existing road surface and repairing the road, before applying new asphalt and line marking.

Read our traffic bulletin for more information.

SH1 between Para and Speeds Roads

Various work including sealing patching, road sweeping and line marking that was originally scheduled for completion tomorrow (Saturday 18 October) has been extended due to this week’s wet weather. Work will resume on Monday 20 October and continue until Friday 24 October between 6.30am and 6pm (no work will be carried out on Saturday 18 October). Stop/go traffic management and a reduced speed limit will be in place during work hours. Expect delays of up to 5 minutes.

SH1 south of Ward

A road rebuild covering a 600-metre stretch of SH1, south of Ward, is underway. From Mondays to Saturdays stop/go traffic management is in place between 7am and 6pm. A 30 km/h temporary speed limit remains in place 24/7. Plan ahead for delays of up to 10 minutes at this site during work hours. This work is scheduled to be completed on Friday 24 October.

Read our traffic bulletin for more information.

Onsite on State Highway 1 south of Ward, where our team is into the second week of a road rebuild.

SH1 Waimanagarara (Kaikōura)

A road rebuild is progressing from just north of School House Road to just south of Postmans Road. Work is being carried out between 6am and 6pm, Mondays to Fridays until Friday 31 October. Stop/go traffic lights are in place at this site 24/7. Expect up to 15 minute delays.

SH1 between SH71 Lineside Road and Williams Street (near Kaiapoi)

Night work continues on pavement testing investigations between 9pm and 5am. The northbound and southbound lanes will close one direction at a time while work is underway. Work will also be carried out at the SH1/Williams Street intersection. Detours will be in place via Smith Street and Williams Street - please see the map below. Access to Pineacres Restaurant and Bar will be available throughout the works. All work is expected to be completed by Monday 20 October.

Read our traffic bulletin for more information.

SH6 Blenheim to Nelson

SH6 Whangamoa Saddle

Resilience works continue between Rai Valley and Hira. Stop/go traffic management and a 30km/h reduced speed limit is in place 24/7 for the safety of all road users. There are five sites to complete as part of this project, however only one site will be worked on at a time to minimise disruption. Plan ahead for delays of up to 10 minutes when travelling between Nelson and Blenheim while this work is underway.

Read our traffic bulletin for more information.

The photo below shows magnum stones being placed at the resilience work site. Steel cages are then placed and tied to these stones before they're filled with concrete to create a retaining wall structure.

SH63 Renwick to Kawatiri Junction

SH63 Andersons Bridge

Work to replace Andersons Bridge on State Highway 63 following the June and July storm events is almost finished. This week our team backfilled the bridge abutments that support the weight of the bridge and its loads. Construction of the road at each end of the bridge is complete and guardrails are being installed. A single lane of traffic is now using the bridge under stop/go traffic management and a 30km/h temporary speed limit. Stop/go will remain in place until all guardrails have been installed, and the bypass that was used during the bridge construction is removed. Surfacing works will be carried out during the week of 27 October. Following this, the bridge will reopen to two lanes.

Andersons Bridge on Thursday 16 October 2025.

SH63 Wairau Valley East

Work to rebuild a 1.3 kilometre section of State Highway 63, on the Renwick side of the Wairau Valley township continues until Friday 12 December. Stop/go traffic management is in place between 7am and 6pm, Mondays to Saturdays. A 30 km/h temporary speed limit remains in place 24/7. Plan ahead for delays of up to 10 minutes at this site during work hours.

Read our traffic bulletin for more information.

Please note there will be stop/go traffic management in place at multiple locations on State Highway 63 over the next four weeks as we carry out minor storm damage repairs. Expect short delays while this work is underway.

Upcoming night closure on SH6 - Whangamoa Saddle

State Highway 6 - Whangamoa Saddle night closures

We’ll be closing State Highway 6 Whangamoa Saddle, between Rai Valley and Hira for three weeks of night time resurfacing and maintenance works in November as our top of the south summer roadworks continue. The closure will be in place from Sunday 9 until Friday 28 November, Sunday to Thursday nights between 8pm and 5:30am.

We'll reopen the road once a night to let traffic through. If you want to travel overnight you’ll need to be at the closure points - the weighbridge in Hira, and on the Rai Valley straight at Rai Engineering & Mechanical, by 12:30 am. Please plan carefully to ensure you meet this schedule.

It’s important we complete these works as quickly and as safely as possible which is why we’ve planned this work to be carried out at night, when there are fewer vehicles using the road. During the closure roadworkers will reseal sections of the highway, clear drainage, replace a culvert, carry out resilience improvements, and other general maintenance work to ensure the road is in good shape before the summer holidays.

We know this will be disruptive but given the narrowness of the road and the heavy equipment being used for resurfacing, the highway must be closed to keep you and roadworkers safe. If you want to travel between Blenheim and Nelson overnight you can detour via State Highway 63 and St Arnaud. This will add an extra 45 minutes to travel times.

Read our media release for more information.

Upcoming night closure on SH1 Weld Pass

With the 2025-26 summer maintenance season well underway in Marlborough, State Highway 1 Weld Pass is next in line for road rebuilding work.

Night works are planned for Weld Pass from Sunday 23 November to Friday 5 December. Work will be carried out nightly between 7pm and 5am. There will be one opening each night at midnight to let queued traffic through the work area. The northbound lane will travel first, followed by the southbound lane.

Weld Pass must be closed to all traffic while the work is completed. It's a narrow road with limited space - resurfacing work and laying asphalt uses large machinery and it simply isn’t possible to allow traffic through the work site while work is underway

Roadworkers will lay just under 3,500 m2 of asphalt to strengthen the road surface of Weld Pass. This will include milling/removing the old surface, before adding new layers. They will make the most of the closure by carrying out other maintenance work including culvert works, clearing drainage and attending to signage and vegetation.

This work's similar to servicing your car or repainting your house -regular maintenance prevents bigger problems down the track.

Read our media release for more information.

More information

Please be aware that there may be other less disruptive state highway works not listed in this newsletter. 

All work is subject to weather and other unforeseen circumstances. In the event of unsuitable conditions, work will be rescheduled to the next suitable workday.

For more information on the Marlborough state highway maintenance programme, contact us at Marlboroughmaintenance@nzta.govt.nz

Visit our website www.nzta.govt.nz/sh-maintenance-programme/marlborough

For information on Nelson/Tasman, or Canterbury state highway maintenance,  where you can sign up for newsletters that cover other regions.