SH2 Wairarapa highway improvements

1 September 2022

August/September 2022 update

Welcome to our 4th update on the SH2 Masterton to Carterton Safety Improvement Project. If you know anyone who might be interested in these updates, they can sign up on this webpage here.

Associate Minister of Transport, Kieran McAnulty (second from left), turned the sod along with the Mayors of Masterton and Carterton and Waka Kotahi’s Regional Manager System Management Mark Owen.

Sod turning kicks off safety improvements work

The Associate Minister, whose responsibilities include regional road safety, is also MP for Wairarapa which includes Masterton and Carterton. The event was his first official event as Associate Minister of Transport, lending extra significance to the milestone.

“These improvements are a key part of the plan to make this critical route through Wairarapa safer, and will help meet our Road to Zero targets to reduce the numbers of people killed and seriously injured on our roads,” says Kieran McAnulty.

The improvements include flexible safety barriers in various locations on the highway between Masterton and Carterton and three new roundabouts at Ngaumutawa Road, Norfolk Road and East Taratahi Road.

Pedestrian facilities to make it safer for school children and others to cross the road, road widening, and new signage are also included in the package.

Paora Ammunson (Ngati Kahungunu, Rangitane ki Wairarapa) blessed the site ahead of the first sod being turned. Also pictured left to right are Waka Kotahi’s Mark Owen, Associate Transport Minister and local MP Kieran McAnulty, Masterton Mayor Lyn Patterson, and Carterton Mayor Greg Lang.

Work restart

Work has started on safety improvements along State Highway 2 between Masterton and Carterton. To keep everyone safe while we complete this important work, we’ve made some changes to the road layout.

The main changes you’ll see as you pass through the area are:

• The entire project area now has a 70km/h speed limit
• Lower restrictions will apply within specific sites, depending on work being done
• The northbound passing lane, north of Clareville, is now closed, and will reopen once the entire project is complete
• The southbound passing lane, which started south of the Waingawa industrial estate, is now closed permanently
• There is no passing through the entire project area

Our top priority is the safety of both people passing through the work site, and our crews working on the project.

When passing through the area, please be mindful of the changing road layouts and traffic management. Please adhere to all temporary speed limits. Your journey may be different in the afternoon than it was in the morning, so please be patient and allow for additional travel time as you move through the area.

Soakage pit under construction at the Wiltons road intersection. The white material is a geotextile layer, which lines the pit before it is filled with rocks This helps to prevent mud and dirt blocking the flow of stormwater through the soakage pit.

Main construction

The main physical work kicked off in August with the construction of stormwater drainage systems for the new roundabout at the Wiltons Road/SH2 intersection. 

Part of this work includes large soakage pits which will collect stormwater off the road, and off the new roundabout. The purpose of these is to allow time for stormwater to soak into the ground and to prevent erosion during heavy rain.

Widening of SH2 is ongoing in various areas between the Norfolk Road and Wiltons Road intersections. It's also started in area between the Wiltons Road intersection and Chester Road. The installation of safety barriers on the sides of SH2 in this area will start in September.

New activity has started at the Norfolk Road intersection. We’re digging trenches across SH2 to relocate power cables, and for the relocation of streetlights which are currently situated in the footprint of the new roundabout. 

Most of this work is taking place at night to minimise disruption to traffic, and stop-go traffic management is in place while this work is carried out.

Work on the southern turnaround facility, south of Wiltons Road has also started, and drainage systems and soakage pit installations will commence in the next few weeks. Physical construction of the Wiltons roundabout is scheduled to start in a few weeks’ time and we'll give you an update on the progress of this in our next newsletter.

Widening work taking place on SH2. The first, or sub-base layers are placed and compacted with a drum roller – this is to be followed by the second layers, called basecourse, before the top layer of chip-seal is laid.

More information

Once again, we would like to thank everyone using SH2 for your patience, care and understanding while driving past our work sites.
 
If you own a property along SH2 between Masterton and Carterton that is tenanted or leased out, please forward this newsletter on to your tenants, or request them to sign up for updates on this webpage here. 

If you have any questions, comments or feedback, the project team is always keen to hear from you. Feel free to get in touch by phone on 0800 353 824 or email us at SH2Wairarapa@nzta.govt.nz.