One of the slips on Eastern Hutt Road. Photo / Mark Mitchell
One of the slips on Eastern Hutt Road. Photo / Mark Mitchell
Frustrated Hutt Valley residents whose daily commutes have leapt from 10 minutes to an hour due to massive slips on key roads can soon expect some relief.
Multiple major slips on Eastern Hutt Rd near Stokes Valley have caused traffic chaos for residents and others cutting through the area to get to Upper Hutt.
But Lower Hutt mayor Campbell Barry said the Hutt City Council expects to have an answer for motorists by the end of the working week as to when they can expect a change to the road layout.
The slips have caused two southbound lanes on Eastern Hutt Rd to close, condensing traffic into one lane both in and out.
The council was planning to open one lane in a contraflow system, with two lanes open heading out of the valley in the morning, switching to two lanes heading into the valley in the afternoon.
Barry has also made a commitment as a mayoral candidate to put millions of dollars towards fixing Stokes Valley's access issues.
The suburb has only one road in and out and was crippled by the slips, caused by recent heavy rain.
The council has been allocated $33.4 million in funding from the Government, $20m of which Barry wanted to put towards resilience infrastructure in the city.
"A lion's share will obviously go into some of the issues [in Stokes Valley]."
Of the total amount, $8.4m would be available next year, with the remaining amount coming in 2024.
The extreme weather and resulting disruptions over the past six weeks demonstrated the need to put a climate resilience lens across the city, Barry said.
Homes above the slips were evacuated. Photo / Mark Mitchell
"The recent slips, and frequent storm events over the past 12 months, are a direct result of our changing climate. We need to do more now to build resilience within our communities that are more at risk in severe weather events.
"We cannot have major disruptions like we've seen in Eastern Hutt Rd every time there's a severe downpour. We are a growing city, and it's time to seriously invest in our future."
Barry also planned to write to local MPs and Waka Kotahi asking them to be involved in improving the Hutt's resilience and to show a willingness to advocate and ultimately fund some of the infrastructure needed.
"While this funding will go some way to increasing resilience, addressing these challenges would require investment from the Government."
Council officers will report back later in the year to the new council on options to increase resilience, including looking at access to the largest suburbs.
