Waihoehoe Road upgrade

Project update: December 2024

20 December 2024

He pānui | Project newsletter

We are pleased to bring you this Waihoehoe Road upgrade project newsletter. This issue includes an update on the detailed design, enabling works and an overview of our recent community information day. 

Te kaupapa | Key features of the design

The project team have now completed the developed design for the Waihoehoe Road Upgrades. The upgrades are on a 400m section of Waihoehoe Road between Great South Road and Kath Henry Lane as well as work on connecting roads.

The project aims to make it easy for people to reach the new Drury Railway Station and housing development to support long-term growth in the region. Key features of the design include:

• Additional lanes from 2 to 4 and up to 6 lanes on Waihoehoe Road Bridge.
• Signalised intersections at Waihoehoe Road/Great South Road and Waihoehoe Road/Kath Henry Lane.
• A new, higher bridge over the North Island Main Trunk Line. This will also support the Papakura to Pukekohe rail line electrification and future four tracking of the rail corridor.
• Capacity for future bus lanes.
• Connections for walking and cycling from Great South Road to the new Drury Railway Station.
• New signalised crossing on Great South Road as part of the KiwiRail Drury Station Project.

Click here to view a larger version of the developed design.

Design as of November 2024 which is subject to change following design reviews and interface with adjoining projects.

Ngā whakaritenga | Enabling works

We are beginning to set up the site in preparation for construction of the Waihoehoe Road Upgrade. These enabling works will provide a safe work area for the construction team to work near the rail tracks while minimising impacts to the rail network.

Construction hoarding walls will be installed along both sides of the rail tracks near Tui Street for a distance of 70m.  The hoardings are being installed early because they can only be built during periods when trains aren’t running.  Construction noise will be reduced where possible, and particularly noisy work will be avoided at night and minimised during Sundays and public holidays. Affected properties will be notified when noisy work is planned outside normal working hours.

To allow space for construction and for storage of vehicles and material, all parking space will be removed on the eastern side of Tui Street during the construction period until February 2025.

Click here to read more about the enabling works.

Ngā pātai auau | Frequently asked questions

Why is a new bridge needed?

The existing Waihoehoe Road bridge is not high enough to meet KiwiRail’s design standards or wide enough for future four-tracking.

The new bridge will support the Frequent Transit Network (FTN) with additional lanes from 2 to 4, and up to 6 lanes. This will enable the extra vehicle and bus lanes as well as walking and cycling facilities needed for the growing population.

Why is the new bridge going on the northern side of the existing Waihoehoe Road bridge?

Building the new bridge north of the existing one has less impact on utilities and better supports rail development and future land use. There is more space to make the bridge taller and wider to meet absolute minimum clearance between the top of the tracks and underside of the bridge, and for future rail four-tracking.

Moving the new bridge to the south would have a huge impact on the land designated for the new Drury Railway Station, which is already under construction. The closer the bridge is to the station, the greater vertical clearance required which would lead to a significant cost increase to level Great South Road on the western side of the rail line.

A further benefit of building the new bridge to the north is that it ties in better with the existing roads on either side, both vertically and horizontally (Great South Road, Norrie Road, and Waihoehoe Road). It allows the new signalised intersection to meet geometric design standards for road approach grades, vertical curves, and minimum sight distances to ensure safety for all road users.

Finally, building on the northern side also means less impact on traffic because it will allow the existing Waihoehoe Bridge to remain open during construction.

Site setup underway for the enabling works to begin.

We were able to provide information about the enabling works, presented the current Developed Design and answered general project questions.

More information

For more information on the Waihoehoe Road upgrade project, contact us at:

Email: waihoehoeroad@nzta.govt.nz 
Phone: 0800 443 431

Visit our website www.nzta.govt.nz/projects/waihoehoe-road-upgrade