Bridge of sighs still has up to 40 years of life left

The heavy flooding that cut people off from crossing the Waihenga Bridge last week is a sore reminder that a replacement is a while away.

The bridge on State Highway 53 is the main route into Martinborough and flooding in winter closes it on a yearly basis.

The South Wairarapa District Council has been calling for a new bridge for a long time.

But because the bridge still has about 40 years of use left, it will not be replaced any time soon.

NZ Transport Agency regional operations manager Mark Owen said that, on average, the bridge was closed for around 30-40 hours a year due to flooding.

"While we recognise these closures are extremely frustrating and disruptive, the bridge is in good condition and we have been unable to justify funding a full replacement at this stage."

He said in light of the town being effectively cut off after last weekend's flooding, NZTA would review the possible replacement of the bridge because it was of "paramount importance" that Martinborough remained connected. Strengthening the bridge was put on the the agency's to-do list last year.

Mr Owen said a recent assessment of the bridge found it was in good structural condition.

"However, we want to ensure it stays this way, so we've commissioned around $500,000 of work to protect the bridge abutments [structural supports] from being eroded by river debris.

NZTA has also recently completed maintenance work on the bridge, replacing the expansion joints.

South Wairarapa Mayor Adrienne Staples has previously said the council reluctantly accepted the bridge would not be replaced in the near future but the constant closure of the bridge was "clearly unacceptable" for residents. The bridge is closed when river levels reach 500mm from underneath the bridge and is reopened once it is deemed safe.