Northland businesses devastated as SH1 set to close at Brynderwyns

Patsy Montgomery from Patsy Montgomery Design says the diversion creates traffic chaos in Waipū. Photo / Denise Piper

Businesses and residents are devastated to hear State Highway 1 will close over the Brynderwyns again this summer, pushing thousands of vehicles into Bream Bay towns.

NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) has announced it will close the route from February 26 to carry out urgent repair works following onslaughts of bad weather, including Cyclone Gabrielle.

The highway will be closed for about nine weeks in 2024, but will open for six days over Easter.

Detours north include Mangawhai to Waipū Cove - which is not suitable for truck-and-trailer units - through Paparoa Oakleigh Rd and through Dargaville on SH12 and SH14.

The closure will mean gridlock in Waipū and drivers who are so fed-up they do not want to stop, said shop owner and longtime resident Patsy Montgomery.

“It’s terrible for us ... It will destroy March trading.”

Montgomery said one major concern is traffic safety, with the diverted cars not sticking to the 30km/h speed limit, nor stopping at the stop sign.

“It’s just a continuous stretch of cars. If you want to cross the road, you can’t - nobody stops.”

She wanted to see better policing of the traffic through Waipū and more consideration for the shops paying a high price for the closure.

“I have a 6-year-old granddaughter [who needs to cross the road]. We’re pretty angry about the rude drivers.”

Drivers feeling frantic with the diversion and not wanting to stop has also impacted Waipu Pizza Barn, said co-owner Clayton Gwynne.

Gwynne said he is devastated the Brynderwyns will close again.

“We’ve had three and a half years of tough trading; we expect a long, hot summer and now, halfway through that, the Brynderwyns are closing.”

Gwynne also felt for hospitality businesses further north, saying the closure will stop visitors coming to Northland.

He thought if the highway had to close, it would’ve been better if it was after Easter when visitor numbers drop.

Residents are also concerned about the impact of the highway closure on them.

Mangawhai local Chris Hill said the closure is “heartbreaking for businesses” and will also put a lot of pressure on the roading network.

Amy Frater from Cow Shed Pies says the diversion is good for her Mangawhai Village food truck business, which sells homemade pies. Photo / Denise Piper

The detour route has three one-lane bridges which become congestion chokepoints.

Mangawhai local Tony Neels said the traffic created by the Brynderwyns closure is so bad many locals choose to stay at home.

“The roads are already under stress because of the last weather event. They [the council] have been frantically trying to fix the roads but it’s a patch-up job.”

Neels said NZTA needed to think about traffic management at busy intersections in Mangawhai, such as having someone on point duty at the Insley St roundabout, where queues can stretch 1.5km.

“We’ve got lots of roundabouts now but it still doesn’t let traffic flow when it’s under pressure,” he said.

Mangawhai resident Ailsa Trevithick accepted there was no good time to close the Brynderwyns route but said there needed to be better signs through the area for drivers unfamiliar with Mangawhai.

She had heard of people getting lost during the last diversion.

Whangārei mayor and Northland Mayoral Forum chairman Vince Cocurullo said it was good the closure was timed to avoid the busiest part of the season.

He also hoped visitors would continue to come north when the highway is closed, allowing time in their travels to stop along the way.

One business operator who is pleased about the closure is Amy Frater of Mangawhai Village food truck Cow Shed Pies.

Frater said she did a roaring trade during the last closure, with drivers happy to make a quick stop to grab a pie and drink.

But she felt sorry for Kaiwaka businesses, which will face significant losses with the closure, including a cafe that stocks her pies.

A Northland Inc economic impact report found the effects of the repeated closures on the Brynderwyns bled the region of $1.94 million a day for the 58 days it was closed this year, to a total of at least $112.8m.

Denise Piper is a news reporter for the Northern Advocate, focusing on health and business. She has more than 20 years in journalism and is passionate about covering stories that make a difference.