Surveyor Chris Bester at work on Te Ahu a Turanga: Manawatū Tararua Highway. Photo / RNZ/Jimmy Ellingham
Surveyor Chris Bester at work on Te Ahu a Turanga: Manawatū Tararua Highway. Photo / RNZ/Jimmy Ellingham
A single wind turbine blade looms like Manawatū's answer to London’s The Gherkin, its mates hidden by a rise.
A quintet of inquisitive sheep have the best vantage point. A beefy nonchalantly chews its cud as the van decked out in flashing orange light and fluoro flag approaches.
Surveyor Chris Bester cuts a solitary yet colourful figure against the brown landscape as he checks against the 3D model that everything is in the right place on the emerging Eco Viaduct. He is focused on the level and position of the viaduct’s components.
From South Africa, Bester has been here for about four years.
NZME was part of a guided tour of Te Ahu a Turanga: Manawatū Tararua Highway on Monday.
The site, between Saddle Rd and the old Gorge Rd, is Lego on steroids, Meccano for giants.
At each checkpoint, van driver and tour guide Grant Kauri radios in to let those on the other end know our next move. The checkpoint names include Smoko Bend, Moa Point and Fill 9.
A sign says the dust risk is low. It’s not moderate, high or extreme and rather than dust interrupting taking in the views of Te Āpiti Wind Farm it’s the lack of clothing to withstand the wind chilling the desire to admire the mechanical birds. As the New Zealand Wind Energy Association says, the wind resource near the Manawatū Gorge is exceptional, even by international standards.
In 2018 Waka Kotahi said the new highway would open in December 2024. It is now estimated to open in mid-2025.
Kauri says he wants to be open and transparent about the changed date. He knows the Saddle Rd route does wear thin on people and they are anticipating the day they can use the new highway instead to go east or west.
The challenges have been many - two wet summers, the pandemic, and Cyclone Gabrielle during which the water levels reached their highest since construction began in January 2021.
About 10 months were lost with the construction of Parahaki Bridge, which can be seen from the Manawatū Gorge carpark, due to unforeseen poor ground conditions. This created challenges during piling with the 2m diameter holes collapsing into themselves, Kauri says.
The Eco Viaduct, part of Te Ahu a Turanga, is taking shape. It will be more than 300m long and cross sensitive wetlands. Photo / Waka Kotahi
Construction workers also discovered the wetlands under the Eco Viaduct had an unusually large amount of artesian groundwater, another construction challenge.
The viaduct will be about 300m long and spans a sensitive wetland. Kauri says it is an example of the project’s tread lightly principle.
More than 1.8m native shrubs and trees are to be planted across the duration of the project. Felled trees are mulched with the resource used on site.
Kauri is the owner interface manager at Te Ahu a Turanga Alliance, which consists of construction companies, mana whenua and Waka Kotahi.
Meanwhile, on Monday dump truck drivers wave at the two-legged visitors, men unfurl geotextile to line a drain and the site cameras whirl and turn.
The form traveller for the under-construction Parahaki Bridge across the Manawatū River waits its turn in the spotlight. The system allows concrete to be poured in situ.
The highway will be 11.5km with two lanes each way, and a drive time of about 13 minutes for general motorists and 18 minutes for freight (Woodville to Stoney Creek Rd.
A shared use path will travel alongside the highway and there will be three viewing areas over Ashhurst, Woodville and Te Āpiti Wind Farm.
Moving earth from zone 3 of Te Ahu a Turanga will take longer than the other zones due to the saturated ground conditions. Photo / Waka Kotahi
More than 5.2 million cubic metres of earth has been moved on the highway site as the project edges closer to reaching the total earthworks target of six million cubic metres.
Between 300 and 350 people work across the site each day.
