The New Zealand Transport Agency has announced that a new pedestrian and cycle underpass will not be constructed as part of the Baypark to Bayfair Link project (Bay Link).
NZ Transport Agency senior project delivery manager Andrew Thackwray said the construction of an underpass would be highly complex. The total cost to complete the underpass was expected to be $33 million "and the complexity of the work required would add more than two years to the construction timeline".
"We understand that this decision will be disappointing for many in the community, but a new underpass is no longer an affordable option in what is currently a highly constrained funding environment."
Thackwray said, in a statement released late yesterdayafternoon, pedestrians and cyclists will be expected to cross Maunganui Rd using the signalised Bayfair roundabout, once the project was completed. Cycle prioritisation through the roundabout is expected to be factored into the phasing of the traffic lights.
He said the new underpass also needed to support the massive weight of the bridge approach ramps above it, and the ground below needed improvement to ensure stability and safety in an earthquake.