One of the largest and most ambitious maintenance projects undertaken in New Zealand is starting in September 2024 on State Highway 1 in central and southern Waikato. Sections of SH1 from just north of Tīrau to Waiouru will be the focus of accelerated maintenance over a 16-month period.
SH1 through central and southern Waikato is an important route within our highway network. The last few years have seen an increase in the number of potholes and many sections of this route are in the worst condition of all highways in Waikato.
To hold the current condition an increase in basic maintenance would be required but this project will go further by preventing further deterioration in roading quality and bringing the road up to a higher standard. By doing more intense rebuilding, the overall condition and longevity of SH1 can be improved. Funding will come from the new State Highway Pothole Prevention activity class.
This project will use block closures in many areas to expedite delivery and reduce the length of time people are affected by temporary traffic management while we repair the road. Block closures will ensure cost effective delivery, resulting in significant savings compared to the current programme. As well as road rebuilding, other work such as drainage and vegetation control will be undertaken at the same time.
By taking this new approach, the programme for 110 lane kms of work can be condensed from over 4 years to under 16 months. The result will be a superior highway with less maintenance and patching required in the future. The treatments will be designed to not only meet expected traffic growth, but to have a long-term life, ensuring resilience.
The section of SH1 between Tīrau and Waiouru, which is the focus of this accelerated maintenance work, is 220km long. Approximately 14,600 vehicles use the northern end of this section of highway per day, including up to around 2,500 heavy vehicles. At the southern end of Desert Road there are approximately 4,000 vehicles per day, including 940 heavy vehicles.
New Zealanders want a well maintained and reliable transport network. This critical route is not currently in an acceptable condition. Between SH29 at Piarere and SH49 at Waiouru 5,670 potholes were repaired between July 2022 and April 2024. That meant a lot of road works disrupting traffic.
We have heard how disruptive multiple road work sites and traffic delays can be, especially for the freight industry. We know that having reliable, predictable journey times is important to everyone. Hitting potholes on our main highway is also unacceptable.
By going beyond basic maintenance, we can prevent further deterioration in roading quality. Taking a different approach of more intense repairs and rebuilding rather than just pothole fixing will result in roads of a higher standard.
Our objective is to have a stronger road, less prone to potholes. This new approach to fixing and improving the sections rated as very poor on this SH1 corridor includes:
This approach also means efficiency gains, considerable cost savings and increased productivity. Using block road closures will:
There would be an increased spend (estimated $42m) in the first 2 years but condensing over 4 year’s work into 16 months will save an estimated $13.8 million. Longer term, by making these improvements on the highway in such a concentrated manner, we can reduce the amount of future road closures. Calculations show that over 25 years the savings are estimated at $141m in 2024 dollars and $291m if we assume 3% escalation each year.
Road maintenance always comes with some disruption to people. On the positive side, there will be a 16-month period of inconvenience across this SH1 corridor, and then a considerably longer period when there is far less roadworks in the future.
We recognise and acknowledge there will be inconvenience and disruption to people while this work is carried out, especially locals and businesses on SH1 and the detour routes. We will engage with residents and business owners to understand the impacts potential closures and detours will have. We will then investigate if we can address these in our planning. We cannot guarantee that there will not be an impact on businesses who rely on through-traffic while we undertake this necessary and important work.
We are committed to ensuring communities are fully informed of the schedule and impacts with as much notice given as possible. Block closures will have allowances for emergency services, locals and their suppliers to go about their ordinary journeys as much as possible, and access given to towns and centres. Work required in any town centres will be done under night closure only, to lessen disruption to the town’s daytime activities.
We are and will continue to work closely with the local councils, iwi, freight industry, emergency services, bus companies and tourism organisations on this planning. Work is underway to ensure alternative routes are suitable for the increased traffic volumes.
Monitoring travel times and traffic counts on SH1 and alternative routes will be part of ongoing network monitoring and reporting.
We acknowledge that people will need to be patient and understanding over the next 16 months, but the longer-term result will be worth it – Waikato’s main highway will be a source of pride for us all.
CloseWe are finalising plans for further sections of SH1 to be fully closed right down to Waiouru. For the townships, we intend to use nightworks only to lessen disruption.
A draft programme, which is subject to change especially due to weather and other unforeseen circumstances, for work on SH1 is:
The specifics of each closure, including durations and detour routes, are still being worked on and further information will be communicated as soon as it is available. We know the more notice and certainty we can give people, the better.
There will be additional further work required in these sections a few months after the initial closures to put the final asphalt surface coat on where the road has been rebuilt. It is essential to give the rehabilitated pavement time to cure under normal traffic conditions before the final surfacing asphalt is applied. If this is not done, the pavement layer may continue to be compacted after the final coat is laid, resulting in an uneven road surface (rutting). The work required to apply the final coat will only take a short time.
Finish all planned work by December 2025.
CloseThe first section of SH1 to be closed for maintenance and rebuild is SH1 from just south of Tīrau - the SH1/SH5 roundabout – through to the intersection SH1 and SH28 which is just north of Putāruru. This work and closure will start at 7am on Monday 9 September 2024 and reopen on Friday evening 4 October 2024.
The detour routes for the first block closure are shown in the map, and include SH5 and SH28. This detour during the closure will be suitable for all heavy vehicles. We calculate that the total extra journey is 4.6km.
Emergency services will always have full access to the work sites and residences within the closures.
Residents and businesses within the closure points will have access to/from their properties under a 1-way system. Residents living within the closure will receive access passes which are provided to allow for easier transition through the detour points. Information about access, contact numbers and operations is being circulated to residents. Traffic controllers will be onsite to assist. We are also working with residents on what suppliers and regular traffic movements are needed, such as milk tankers, couriers and school buses.
This block closure does not affect the Tīrau township. Work required in any of the townships including Tīrau will be done at nights and all work will be advertised well before commencement. Current indications are that this work will be done in the spring of 2025.
It is expected multiple crews will be working in shifts to complete the works as quickly and safely as possible. The work will be done during daylight from dawn to dusk. During the night, planning, and logistical work, such as refuelling, and getting the site ready can be undertaken to ensure the crews that start as soon as there is sufficient light to allow them to work safely efficiently, and productively.
CloseSH1 between Ātiamuri Bridge and Wairakei Roundabout will be closed from 16 September until 4 October 2024, between the hours of 8am - 6pm, Monday to Saturday. The road will be open overnight 6pm - 8am and on Sundays.
The detours for light vehicles (ie all vehicles you can drive on a Class 1 licence) is via SH30, SH32 and Poihipi Road down to Wairakei Drive. This will add approximately 40kms and 27 minutes extra to journeys.
For all heavy vehicles, the detour will be via SH30 and SH5 which is an additional 42 minutes and 62 kms approximately.
View larger map of SH1 Ātiamuri closure detour map [PDF, 290 KB]
Residents and businesses in areas where the road is closed will be able to access their properties.
Essential vehicles, such as rubbish trucks, school buses, NZ Post and other delivery vehicles will have monitored access to Ātiamuri village and other sites, maintained by the traffic management crew.
Orakei Korako Cave and Thermal Park guests and services will have full access to the attraction from SH1 heading south from Auckland and north from Taupo. The same applies for the Taupo Pet Lodge customers and their dogs.
Other delivery and supply vehicles may choose to make changes to their pick up / delivery times. For instance, milk tankers may switch to night time pickups since the road is open at night. We will be in contact with residents as soon as possible to establish what other regular traffic movements need to be accommodated. If you are a resident in this area, we will be dropping more information off shortly, or may have done this already. If you have any concerns, please contact us using the email below.
Emergency services will always have full access to the site, residences and businesses within the closure.
VMS boards will be placed along each approach on SH1 to advise traffic of appropriate detours. These will be installed a week before the closure to provide advanced warning.
This work is being delivered by Higgins. It includes 8.6 kms of maintenance and road rebuild work including foam stabilisation, cement stabilisation, and chip sealing.
There is a large amount of work needed on this section of SH1 and not all of it is able to be done within this three-week closure. We expect there will be a further closure in this area in late November and some of December. We will keep you up to date with definite dates and times of when this will happen as soon as this information is available.
CloseThe third section of SH1 to be partially closed (just nights) will be from Piarere (SH1/29 intersection) to Tīrau (SH1/SH27 intersection) in both directions.
This starts on Sunday 29 September from 7pm and will reopen at 6am on Friday 18 October.
The night closures won't happen every night - they are from 7pm to 6am, Sunday to Thursday nights. The road will be open from 6am each Friday morning until 7pm Sunday nights.
There are 2 sites within this section and both require structural asphalt resurfacing. Putting in place a fulltime 24/7 road closure is not as efficient in this instance as we need to ensure each layer meets quality standards before moving to the next.
This traditional night work approach will reduce traffic disruption and allow other project areas to proceed simultaneously.
Residents, businesses and emergency services will have access available at all times.
The detour is via SH29 and SH27 as shown in the map.
View larger map of SH1 night time closure [PDF, 174 KB]
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