State Highway 20B Early Improvements Project Update

2 October 2020

Kia ora koutou,

State Highway 20B Project Updates keep you up-to-date with project progress and upcoming physical works on State Highway 20B.

(Photo by Nettie Bird) An early morning orange glow lights Puhinui Road as a truck enters the SH20B worksite from the east near Manukau Memorial Gardens.

Orange is for safety

Each day up to 30,000 private cars, buses, trucks and work vehicles travel along State Highway 20B, to and from the airport and surrounding homes and businesses.  

With multiple work crews working day and night between the SH20 interchange and Tom Pearce Drive, it’s a big job coordinating the movements of site trucks and machinery while keeping the road traffic flowing safely. That job is carrried out by the SH20B Temporary Traffic Management Team. 

To ensure safety there are no right turns allowed, and traffic speeds will remain reduced to either 30kph or 50kph. In the next several months a new lane on each side of the exisiting road will be built along with safe places for people to walk and ride bikes. You will also see two new intersections - one at Campana Road and the other at Manukau Memorial Gardens.

(Photo by Karol Brooks) Narith Bou is the daytime Site Traffic Management Supervisor (STMS) on SH20B

Site Temporary Traffic Management

A dedicated team of 14 Traffic Control (TC) staff look after the 3km-long SH20B site day and night, managing the changing traffic layouts required and deploying more than 1400 road cones, safe-hit posts, fencing and barriers with up to 50 road signs.

During the day, the flow of commuter traffic is prioritised and the work is carried out to the side of the main SH20B carriageway. Narith (pictured) and a team of four TC staff look after the multiple specialist crews that are widening the road and carrying out other tasks like improving drainage and stormwater and upgrading services.

At night STMS Gavin Te Ruki and eight TC staff are responsible for installing the temporary or full road closures that allow the big machinery to come in. Works at night can involve working on the main carriageway, digging trenches, reshaping and paving a new road base and installing upgraded lighting. In the next two weeks Waokauri Bridge will have been fitted with two new beams as it is widened for the new road.

Peter Mclean, Temporary Traffic Management Projects Supervisor on SH20B

Introducing Peter Mclean - Temporary Traffic Management Projects Supervisor on SH20B

Peter Mclean's job on SH20B is all about ensuring that traffic safety management is well coordinated and expertly delivered.

Peter and the Traffic Management team work closely with Auckland Transport to gain approvals that allow the project to get on with building the new highway just metres from the moving traffic.

“We are always working to keep it as safe as possible for the people that travel through, and for our workers,” he says.

Peter has an eye for detail, even taking his bike for a spin through the temporary shared use path. “I need to make sure I feel safe and see it through the eyes of the people on bikes. It is important to be sure we’ve got the set up right.”

Peter says his challenges are working within the tight timeframes and delivering the complex traffic solutions the engineers need because the site changes on a daily basis.

“I really like my job. The only frustrating thing about what I do every day/night/week is it never stops! Just like Auckland traffic."

Contact us

Please call us at 0800 796 796 or email sh20B@nzta.govt.nz if you have any questions about the SH20B Early Improvements project.

Project overview

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency and Auckland International Airport Limited are upgrading State Highway 20B for better and more reliable travel options with a new shared path and additional priority lanes between Pukaki Creek Bridge and State Highway 20.

This project will integrate with improved transport facilities within the airport precinct along SH20B and at the upgraded Puhinui Station Interchange.

The project is the first step of the Southwest Gateway programme to provide better public transport, walking and cycling facilities with safer and more efficient freight movements to, from and around Southwest Auckland.

Fulton Hogan undertakes this work on behalf of Waka Kotahi.

Key early improvements on State Highway 20B to be delivered by 2021 include:

• A safe place for people to walk and ride bikes
• Safety improvements including central median barrier protection, improved lighting and a reduced speed
• Improved pavement, drainage and stormwater treatment
• Two improved intersections at Campana Road and Manukau Memorial Gardens.

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency works to create transport solutions for all New Zealanders – from helping new drivers earn their licences, to leading safety campaigns to investing in public transport, state highways and local roads.

For more information on the project, you can also visit our website at www.nzta.govt.nz/projects/southwest-gateway/20connect/