Night crews laying final asphalt at the Southern Tie-in

What we have been doing

The Loop Road Stage 2 project has made a lot of progress over the summer.
In December we reached a major project milestone with the southern tie-in connection to Portland Road.  Works started in October, and were completed just before Christmas. This included:

• vegetation clearance
• lizard relocation
• road widening
• drainage
• utilities
• new road surfacing
• street lighting.

Down around the Otaika Stream Bridge area, to prepare the area for the new bridge, we have completed the river embankment ‘riprap’. Rip rap’ is a permanent layer of stones that stabilise the soil against erosion or being washed out in high water flow.

We have also completed construction of the temporary piling platforms and the casing needed to build the pilings for the new Otaika Stream Bridge.

Temporary staging ready to go at Otaika Bridge

After further site investigations into the ground conditions for the Otaika bridge, we have undergone re-design from drilled displacement piles to RAP- Rammed Aggregate Piers.  This method can achieve the soil density with dynamic loading and transfer load through the piles into rock. This method will allow us to continue with bridge works on schedule.

Otaika Stream Bridge – Looking across to the Northern abutment

SH1 overnight road closures in April 2024

A four night closure of State Highway 1, between Portland Road and SH15 roundabout, is necessary for the Loop Road Safety Improvement project, to construct a critical and deep service line across the road.

The planned closure is for Monday 8 April until Thursday 11 April March (4 nights) – 7pm until 5:30am. SH1 will be fully reinstated each night.

The closure is on State Highway 1 between Portland Rd and SH15 Roundabout connection, with a planned detour route along Loop Road.  Working at night and detouring traffic enables greater working areas, creating a safer and more productive worksite. It also reduces disruption to road users as traffic volumes are much lower at night.

The detour route adds no extra time to the journey and will be more efficient for road users as they will not need to come through a stop/go had we closed just one lane at a time.

There are two one-way bridges along the Loop Rd/SH15 detour route which can accommodate heavy traffic (i.e. truck and trailers, artics, curtain siders etc). Oversized loads will NOT be able to travel during this period unless they have already determined their ability to cross the detoured single lane bridges. Please reach out to our project team if you have any questions.

For those residents living within the closure on SH1 and Oaks Road, you will need to enter/exit the closure from the southern access point.  For example, if you are coming south from Whangārei (at night only), residents must follow the signposted detour route south.  Once residents reach the end of Loop Road, they pull to the side and EXIT the detour via the ‘Residents only entrance’ and make their way up SH1 to Oaks Road from the south. 

Residents within the closure wanting to exit (at night only) should head south down SH1 until they reach the road closure. They will be escorted out the exit of the closure through the ‘Resident only exit’ and merged into the traffic.

If you need assistance on the night of the works, please call Site Engineer Aaron on 027 622 8529.

Setting out for retaining wall construction

What’s coming up

Work to construct the retaining wall, south of Oaks Road, started early March. This involves putting in some temporary barriers called ‘sheet piles’ along the creek edge, before constructing the permanent piles, then installing ground anchors for extra stabilisation.

Work is also planned to start on the permanent Oaks Road - this will involve some modifications and extensions to the temporary road.

You will also see some more works happening around the Otaika Stream Bridge, with the team starting the piling on the southern side. 

Project Timeline

Please note the below construction timeline is a guide only and may change slightly with weather and other potential disruptions. We’ll keep you updated with any changes to the construction timeline.

• March - June 2024 – Ground Improvement Piling.
• March – August 2024 – Retaining Wall construction.
• May 2024 –Complete temporary staging and commence bridge piling.
• July 2024 – Jan 2025 –  Complete bridge construction for traffic switch.
• Jan 2025 – Switch single southbound lane onto new Otaika Bridge.
• March/April 2025 – Switch both northbound and southbound lanes onto new Otaika Bridge. Complete northbound works.
• Mid 2025 – Final surfacing, line marking, signage and reinstatement. Project completion.

More information

For more information on the SH1 Loop Road improvements, contact us at northlandproject@nzta.govt.nz

Visit our website www.nzta.govt.nz/loop-road