Kia ora

Welcome to the June update from the SH58 project team.

With winter here we're pleased to advise that construction is well advanced on the first section of highway from Haywards interchange to Mt Cecil Road and we are on track to complete this area of work later this year.

Good progress is also being made from Mt Cecil to Harris Roads, scheduled for completion later this year.

Read on to find out more.

Surfacing works east to Hutt Valley

First section of SH58 safety improvements update

The crew are making good progress on the section between Haywards interchange and Mt Cecil Road.

Major surfacing works are underway and the structural layers will be completed in the next few weeks. The wire rope barriers have been installed in the middle section of road, which will be followed by landscaping. The final surfacing will be applied in early spring - when the weather is warmer.

While installing the new culvert near Hugh Duncan Street, the crew discovered an old, high voltage junction box that wasn't part of the plan. This happens from time to time with older infrastructure and poor historic record keeping. As a result, the culvert has had to be redesigned and the completion date reset.

New street lighting and landscaping

Finishing touches being applied

Looking east from Mt Cecil Road towards the Hutt Valley, this image shows the new recently installed street lighting, the final kerb and the landscaping area that will be planted at the completion of the project.

Digging out the road in preparation for upgrading

Building resilient roads... layer upon layer

Roads are made of several layers of different material beneath the final surface, whether that is asphalt or chipseal. These layers have various functions, including providing strong foundations, to spread the weight of the traffic evenly across the surface of the road and drain the water away from the centre to the side drains.

A significant part of any roading project is the construction of these underlying layers. Often when working on an existing road the material already in place needs to be dug out and replaced with upgraded materials that will withstand the rigours of modern traffic.

As part of the SH58 safety improvements project, we are widening the road and reducing the curves. This means the existing road and new wider lanes need to be dug out so that the new material can be laid across the full new width.

The first and deepest layers of material have been completed on both east and west bound lanes and the Vodafone cables that ran alongside the old width have been relocated.

Construction of the next layers will be carried out under night time stop/go traffic management starting in late July.

Please take care as you travel through the area.

Update on programme of work from Harris Road to Transmission Gully interchange

While Government have reconfirmed its support for the direction and funding for the delivery of SH58 safety improvements project, large infrastructure projects like this are complex and take time. The programme of works and design for the next stage between Harris Road to Transmission Gully Interchange at Pāuatahanui is currently being finalised. We hope to be able to share this with everyone in the next couple of months.

More information

For more information on the SH58 improvements project, contact us at sh58safety@nzta.govt.nz

Visit our website www.nzta.govt.nz/sh58-improvements