Vehicles along Havelock Rd which is the only direct road between Hastings and Havelock North. Photo / NZME
Vehicles along Havelock Rd which is the only direct road between Hastings and Havelock North. Photo / NZME
A new arterial road linking Hastings and Havelock North would "increase resilience" between the two centres in the case of extreme weather events, a report before Hastings District Council says.
The council is considering what improvements it should make to its roading network which covers a whopping 1600km of localroads.
A roading report was put before the council's Heretaunga Takoto Noa Māori Standing Committee on Wednesday, which will return feedback on the report.
That report sets out different options the council could take to improve its roading network to make it more "resilient" to extreme weather events such as floods, erosion and slips.
"Data over the previous three decades shows a clear trend in increasing extreme weather events," the report read.
"This indicated that Hastings District Council will face higher costs, more frequent and possibly longer road closures in the future if the resilience of the road network is not addressed."
Currently, there is one direct road, Havelock Rd, running directly from Hastings to Havelock North. Back roads are also available.
The report says data shows there is an increasing number of extreme weather events impacting the region. Photo / Warren Buckland
The report stated a business case could be considered for "an alternative arterial link between Havelock North and Hastings to increase resilience between the two cities".
The report set out three main strategies for the council to consider, with one of those strategies featuring the idea of a new arterial link between the two centres.
Timeframes around when upgrades could be made to the road network were not included in the report.
Havelock North has been steadily growing and a large development is in the pipeline off Iona and Middle roads, just south of Havelock North, which could see 600 more homes built in that area.
The roading report put before a committee this week also revealed the worst hit council-owned roads in the region for road closures, due to extreme weather events.
"The roads closed most frequently from 2011 to 2020 were Taihape Rd, Makahu Rd, and Darkys Spur Rd [which had three closures each].
"The most common causes of road closures [across the district] were fallen trees (eight closures), slips (seven closures), flooding (seven closures), and snow (five closures)."
The report will help the council develop a programme business case (PBC) to improve its road network.
