Hawke's Bay recovery

19 May 2023

Tēnā koe,

After three long months, traffic is now flowing on all state highways across Hawke’s Bay. We’re glad to have Wairoa reunited with the rest of Hawke’s Bay, and to see the families, friends and businesses separated by Cyclone Gabrielle able to reconnect.

We’d like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to the communities along State Highway 2, who have shown incredible understanding while we worked on the road. It’s been a deeply challenging time for the people of Tūtira, Putorino, Raupunga and Wairoa, and the Waka Kotahi team has been humbled by their fortitude and support. Thank you.

We are working on how to strengthen the resilience of SH2, along with the other state highways in Hawke’s Bay, to protect these lifelines from events like cyclones in the future. We plan to work with councils and mana whenua to identify what’s needed and will then engage with communities and stakeholders.

We reached a major milestone in our work to strengthen the resilience of SH2, with resource consent for a new Waikare Gorge bridge lodged earlier this week.

We’ll keep you up to date on this work, and the repairs to our highway network, through this newsletter. With all highways back up and running, it will now be issued monthly. Please feel free to share the information below or to encourage those interested to subscribe.

State Highway 2

State Highway 2 is now open, restoring the last link in Hawke’s Bay’s state highway network. The temporary Bailey bridge was blessed by Ngāti Pāhauwera and Maungaharuru-Tangitū Trust in a moving ceremony on Saturday, attended by representatives from Hastings District Council, Wairoa District Council, Waka Kotahi, local leaders and community members.

Wairoa Mayor Craig Little said now that the road is open, the people of Wairoa are looking forward to reconnecting with family, agencies, services and people who they have not seen for three very long months.

"This road is our lifeline, and we are appreciative of the work that has gone into restoring connectivity."

We are thrilled to see people and freight flowing between Napier and Wairoa again, and we couldn’t have reached this milestone without the support and patience of everyone along the way. A huge thank you to both the communities who bore with us, and to the contractors who poured hundreds of hours of hard work into repairing the road.

Travelling State Highway 2: What you need to know

The road may be back open, but there are hazards and restrictions in place. If you’re planning to travel between Napier and Wairoa, here’s what you need to know.

Opening hours
The majority of the road is open 24/7. However, the section between Waikoau Hill and Aropaoanui Road is currently closed from 6pm to 7am for safety reasons.

The road environment remains fragile, and we may need to close the highway at short notice for extended periods, particularly in wet weather.

Road condition
The road looks very different to the way it did before the cyclone. You’ll see areas ranging from minor to significant damage, and some sections of the highway are one lane.

Waikare Gorge Bailey bridge
Vehicles crossing the Waikare Bailey bridge must fit within these limitations:
• Maximum weight: 50MAX (up to 50 tonnes)
• Maximum width: 2.55m wide
• Maximum length: 24.7m long

High Productivity Motor Vehicles (HPMVs) and over-dimensional vehicles are not permitted. We are looking at how to help get these vehicles across the Waikare Gorge while a more permanent solution is constructed.

The bridge is flexible – there’s a noticeable 'deflection' or slight bending as you drive over. This is safe, and it is important to respect the 10km/h speed limit in place to limit the liveliness of the bridge.

Road works
Expect to see crews working on damaged sites along the route for some time.

Traffic management and speed restrictions
• Areas that are down to one lane will have a 30km/h speed limit and traffic lights or a priority give-way in place.
• The area around Devil's Elbow is also under a 30km/h speed limit.
• Work sites will have a 30km/h speed limit in place.

Please respect the temporary traffic management, drive to the conditions, and allow for delays of up to 30 minutes when travelling. Exercise patience and understanding, and please be considerate of other people on the road, including our roadworkers.

Watch: State Highway 2 between Wairoa and Napier is now open again.

Image: The Waikare Bailey bridge is blessed, reconnecting Wairoa and the communities along SH2 with the rest of Hawke’s Bay.

Image: Jaclyn Hankin, Regional Manager, Maintenance and Operations at Waka Kotahi, speaks at the opening of the Waikare Bailey bridge.

Waikare Gorge realignment and new bridge

We've reached a major milestone in our work to strengthen the resilience of State Highway 2, with resource consent for a new Waikare Gorge bridge lodged earlier this week.

The project will see a new 160-metre bridge built across the Waikare Gorge (view preferred bridge option below) and a 3.9km realignment of the road.

The project team have had a number of discussions and meetings with landowners, key stakeholders and iwi partners to gather their views. An arch bridge construction (as shown below) has been identified as the preferred bridge option. This type of structure will allow the bridge to be built without impact on the river or the walls of the gorge itself.

The resource consent has been submitted to Hawke’s Bay Regional Council. Once design and consent has been completed, the project will be put forward for construction funding consideration.

Image: Strengthening work on the Esk River Bridge.

A stronger Esk River Bridge

Strengthening works on the Esk River Bridge on State Highway 2 have been delayed by wet weather and are now expected to be complete on 25 May. The team is using a grout product that is very sensitive to moisture. Excess moisture prevents the product from setting and curing. Once the works on the bridge are finished, our contractor will still need to fill some cracks under the bridge, and this is expected to be complete by 16 June. There won’t be any lane closures necessary to complete the works under the bridge.

State Highway 5

Urgent seal repairs need to take place on State Highway 5, near the Esk Slip, due to the deterioration of the temporary bypass road. As a result, the road will close at 9pm on Wednesday (24 May) and reopen at 3am the following morning (Thursday 25 May).

The closure points will be the gates near Hedgeley Road in Eskdale and near Caroline Drive just south of Taupō; there will also be a closure point at Glengarry Road. Residents will require proof of address to get through the closure points.

We apologise for any inconvenience. Please note that the closure is being carried out at night to cause as little disruption as possible.

Teams are making steady progress on restoring sections affected by underslips and scouring back to two lanes, and we’re working to keep traffic flowing on SH5.

Temporary works are underway at three sites damaged by scouring from the Mangakōpikopiko Stream, to protect the highway until we can put a permanent fix in place. A design for the reconstruction of the road at Eland, where there has been a large underslip, is being finalised and teams will begin work in the coming weeks.

We are working through the design for a solution to a large scour at Te Haroto. Work to repair this site and install new culverts is now likely to begin mid-June.

Our work on the major slip between Glengarry and Te Pōhue is progressing well, and we expect to have the road back to two lanes by the end of July.

State Highway 51

Important safety works are underway on State Highway 51. Over the next few weeks, we’ll begin installing median and side barriers that will make this stretch of road safer for our communities.

Following community feedback, we made changes to the construction stages regarding the temporary roundabout to ensure that traffic is flowing at all times. Because of the width of the highway, we can keep two lanes of traffic open and expect minimal impact on traffic flow. Independent monitoring of peak traffic flows while barriers are being installed will enable us to plan the next phases of the project, including the possibility of a temporary roundabout.

During the construction period for this first stage, which is expected to be complete by late July, there will be traffic management in place, with crews working between 9am and 4pm Monday to Friday.

This project is an important priority for Waka Kotahi, alongside cyclone recovery work. The work that began in May is stage one of the project. Construction of stage two is expected to begin later this year, with installation of side and median barriers between Awatoto Road and Ellison Street. In 2024, a new permanent roundabout will be constructed at the SH51/Awatoto intersection.

SH51: Your questions

Will some of the Norfolk pine trees need to be removed during construction?
Most of the Norfolk Pines are under a protection order enforced by Napier City Council. Waka Kotahi will not remove those protected trees. There are several juvenile and smaller Norfolk Pines in close proximity to the permanent roundabout location and the project team will do their best to safely relocate those trees elsewhere. We are working with a qualified arborist to ensure that our design, and eventual construction, won’t have a negative impact on the health of the trees.

Will there be a crossing for cyclists and pedestrians?
The permanent roundabout works will also include a dedicated pedestrian and cyclist crossing over the highway, approximately 20 metres north of the Awatoto Road intersection that will link to the coastal shared facility to the east. The team has also designed a new crossing over the railway tracks that will link into a proposed Napier City Council footpath with stairs and a ramp on the eastern side of Te Awa Avenue.

Why are you continuing this safety project during the flood recovery?
The cyclone recovery is our top priority, however, the safety and resilience of unaffected sections of the network need to remain front of mind in order to reduce deaths and serious injuries on our roads. We need to make sure that SH51, which is a notoriously dangerous road, is getting the safety upgrades it requires.

Planning for the first stage of this project was completed prior to the cyclone and funding secured, so we are ready to start. We can undertake works in parallel with recovery works and therefore minimise disruptions for road users and the community.

Why don’t you fix the bridges first?
Guard rail repairs on the Waitangi Bridge have been completed and the temporary speed has been raised to 60km/h. Remote monitoring sensors are in place and there are no concerns about the strength of the bridge. Brookfields Bridge and Waiohiki Bridge over the Tutaekuri River are on local roads and not managed by Waka Kotahi.

Image: Temporary traffic management worker Greg Stevens and traffic management operative/site traffic management supervisor in training Pacey Torea, from Higgins HB Traffic Management.

Celebrating our road safety heroes

It's Road Safety Week, and this year's theme is road safety heroes. It's a great time to have a think about all the people that contribute to safety on the roads, from emergency services all the way through to you – the people who follow the road rules and travel with consideration and respect for everyone.

We want to give a particular shoutout to roadworkers – they're our road safety heroes. Roadworkers play a vital role in maintaining roads. As we've seen this year, they're the ones on the ground doing the hard mahi to reconnect communities when it matters most.

The past few months, much of the vital work across the North Island – repairing severely damaged roads and bridges that have been washed away – has been in miserable conditions. They've done an amazing job getting things back up and running, and we’re so grateful to them for keeping us moving.

To find out more or take part in Road Safety Week, go to www.roadsafetyweek.org.nz.

To find out more about Road to Zero, go to nzta.govt.nz.

Keep up to date

It’s a challenging time to travel around Hawke’s Bay. Please plan ahead and drive to the conditions.

Traffic updates: Hawke’s Bay
Facebook: Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency - Hawke's Bay and Gisborne
Twitter: Waka Kotahi CNI
Journey planner: Hawke’s Bay
Phone: 0800 4 HIGHWAYS (0800 44 44 49)

More information

For more information on the recovery from Cyclone Gabrielle, see the dedicated Hawke’s Bay Cyclone Recovery section on the Waka Kotahi website. You’ll find all the latest updates, FAQs, and information on the road ahead, all in one place.

You can also contact us at hawkesbay.response@nzta.govt.nz

Subscribing to this newsletter

As Hawke’s Bay recovers from Cyclone Gabrielle, this e-newsletter is designed to keep you updated on our progress, any changes and things you need to know. You are receiving this e-newsletter today as you have previously registered your interest in matters affecting our state highway network in Hawke’s Bay. Please share it with others who may find the information useful or, alternatively, you can unsubscribe.