Canterbury state highway planned roadworks

Tuesday 16 December to Monday 22 December

15 December 2025

Piling underway for the Brougham Street Bridge project

Kia ora

Welcome to the latest Canterbury state highway planned roadworks update.

To stay up to date visit Journey Planner.

The next newsletter will be issued on Monday 19 January 2026

Information current as at 12:45pm on Monday 16 December 2025

Roadworks over the Christmas and New Year

All roadworks will pause for the main holiday period, with contractors shutting down sites from midday Friday 19 December until Monday 5 January at the earliest.

However, some long-term sites may still need to have ongoing traffic management in place to keep people safe.

As we head into the holiday season, we’re working hard to keep your journeys safe and smooth. While most major projects are wrapping up, you’ll still see some of our crews out on the roads repairing potholes and responding to incidents, helping make sure your travel is safe and enjoyable. Please give them space and patience so they can finish their work and get home to spend time with their families too.

SH1 Christchurch to Picton

SH1 north of Christchurch, near Cam River/Ruataniwha: Temporary 30km/h speed limits will remain on SH1 through Pineacres until Wednesday 17 December while the getotech team disestablish the work site

SH1 north of Cheviot at Downs Road, Spotswood: A road rebuild will take place from 10 November to 17 December, from 6am to 6pm. During work hours Downs Road will be closed. Alternate access is via Sinclair or Phoebe Roads. Expect stop/go traffic management and a 30 km/h temporary speed limit.

SH1 Christchurch to Dunedin

SH76 Christchurch Southern Motorway: Night work will continue until 18 December, 7pm to 5am. Crews are adding 4.6 km of barrier and maintenance bays between Wrights Road and Halswell Junction Road. No delays are expected.

SH1 Rolleston at the intersection with Dunns Crossing Road:  Entry to Dunns Crossing Road from SH1 remains closed, reopening for the Christmas break on 19 December.

SH1 Between Dunns Crossing Road and Burnham: Chip sealing work is complete, and a 30 km/h temporary speed limit will remain in place until the end of the week to allow the chip to bed in.

SH1 at the Heslerton Road intersection: Resurfacing work continues until 16 December near the Synlait Milk Factory. Traffic management will include a lane closure on SH1 with stop/go in place, and delays of up to 10 minutes are expected.
Parkins Road will be closed with no access to or from the state highway. Access to the rail crossing and Synlait from State Highway 1 will be closed from 7pm to 5.30am. On Monday 15 December, three-way manual traffic control will be in place on SH1 and Heslerton Road, and Parkins Road will remain closed.

SH1 Rakaia to Timaru: Pavement and surfacing repairs will take place at various locations on weekdays from 7am to 6pm. The sites will operate under daytime stop/go traffic management with a 30 km/h temporary speed limit. Expect delays of up to 20 minutes.

SH1 Timaru, Evans Street / Grants Road: Taitarakihi Culvert replacement works are continuing. Crews have moved to the western side of the highway. Access to Grants Road will be closed 24 hours a day during this stage. Please use alternative side streets to reach SH1. This temporary traffic management arrangement will be in place over the Christmas break. (See map below)

SH1 Pukeuri: A road rebuild is underway until 19 December. Stop/go and lane shifts are in place, with a 30 km/h temporary speed limit. Expect delays of up to 15 minutes. 

SH1 Kakaho Creek: Preparation work for a road rebuild will continue until 19 December.  Expect delays of around 5 minutes.

SH1 Bushey Park (near Palmerston): Preparation work for a road rebuild is underway until 19 December. Expect delays of around 5 minutes. 

SH1 Waikouaiti to Dunedin: Road pavement repairs are taking place at various locations from 15 to 17 December. Expect delays of around 5 minutes.

SH1 Waitaki River Bridge to Dunedin:  High-pressure water cutting at various locations to improve grip and skid resistance from 15 to 19 December. Expect delays of around 5 minutes.

SH1 Timaru, Evans Street / Grants Road:

Taitarakihi Culvert replacement works are continuing. Crews have moved to the western side of the highway. Access to Grants Road will be closed 24 hours a day during this stage. Please use alternative side streets to reach SH1. This temporary traffic management arrangement will be in place over the Christmas break.

Key state highways across the Canterbury Region

SH6 Lower Buller Gorge: Bridge deck repairs are underway between Inangahua and Westport. A 30 km/h temporary speed limit is in place with stop/go traffic management and delays of about 5 minutes.

SH73 Castle Hill, Craigieburn and Starvation Gully: Chip sealing work will take place on 16 and 17 December. Stop/go traffic management and a 30 km/h temporary speed limit will be in place, with delays of around 10 minutes.

SH7 Hope River to Lewis Pass: Road, river, and slip repair works are taking place until 19 December. Stop/go traffic management will operate with a 30 km/h temporary speed limit, and short delays are expected.

SH7 Lewis Pass, Sylivia Flats and Goings south of St James Walkway carpark: Chip sealing will take place on 16 and 17 December. Stop/go traffic management will be in place, and a 30 km/h temporary speed limit will apply. Delays may be up to 20 minutes.

SH75 Halswell Road, Between Augustine Drive/Monsaraz Boulevard and Curletts Road: This project will be pausing from 17 December to 13 January. Lanes will stay narrow and cyclists will still be sharing lanes. The speed limit will stay at 30km/h, and barriers and crossing lights will stay, however, cones and fences will be removed where safe, and side streets will all be open. Fulton Hogan will check the site daily.

SH76 Christchurch Southern Motorway: Night works will take place on 17 and 18 December from 10pm to 4.30am at the Dogbone Roundabout near Canterbury Agricultural Park. The SH76 Curletts Road offramp will be closed and there will be a single lane closed on the roundabout.

SH76 Brougham Street Bridge project: This site will close from Friday 19 December and open again on Monday 5 January. Some temporary traffic management will stay in place during the break, with some cones and fences removed where safe, the site will be checked daily.

SH77 Rakaia Gorge: Chip sealing work is taking place on Monday 15 December. A single lane closure will be in place with stop/go traffic management, a 30 km/h temporary speed limit, and delays of up to 20 minutes.

SH80 Mt Cook Highway: Culvert clearing will take place at various locations until 19 December. Expect delays of around 5 minutes.

SH82 Hakataramea Highway (Waimate to Ikawai): Pavement and surfacing repairs will continue until 18 December. The sites will operate under daytime stop/go with a 30 km/h temporary speed limit. This work is weather dependent and may be rescheduled at short notice. Some sites may be unattended, with temporary speed limits in place.

SH82 Waihao North River Bridge: Work to replace the bridge is underway. Crews are installing a temporary bridge next to the Waihao North River Bridge. A 30 km/h temporary speed limit is in place. The Bridge is now reduced to one lane.

SH85 Meadowbank to Glenpark: Rehabilitation work will take place across various locations until 19 December, 6am to 7pm. Expect stop/go and temporary speed limits.

More information

Please be aware that there may be other less disruptive state highway works not listed in this newsletter. Work is often weather dependant and can be postponed and rescheduled.

Check for traffic updates on Journey Planner

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

Visit our Canterbury State Highway Maintenance website 

For information on West Coast and Alpine Passes state highway maintenance, visit our website where you can sign up for the West Coast and Alpine Passes newsletter