Contractors under pressure to complete highway works before end of renewal season

The wet weather has had a significant impact on the contractors' ability to complete much-needed road renewals. Photo / Waka Kotahi

The weather has been a constant conversation starter this summer, with rain more frequent than sun for large swathes of the country.

The forecast for the remainder of the year continues to threaten more rain - though there are no reports that Santa’s travels will be affected, says Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency.

The wet weather has had a significant impact on the contractors’ ability to complete much-needed road work, as Waka Kotahi aims to complete its largest maintenance programme.

This will put significant pressure on the first quarter of 2023, says the agency’s regional manager of maintenance and operations, Rob Campbell.

“A number of our networks will have to complete 70-80 per cent of their programme between January 4 – when they can return to work – and March 31, when our renewal season ends,” he says.

Work on a number of sites has been paused because of wet weather. These sites will have a temporary seal put in place to ensure they are passable over the two weeks crews are off-site. Photo / 123rf

“This coincides with a time many New Zealanders are looking to travel for their summer holidays.

“These two factors will put conflicting demands on the state highway network, and the best way to resolve this is to work together. All contractors are working hard to plan their work across the remaining months to minimise disruption as much as possible.

“We ask that road users do their part by planning their journeys, and respecting road crews at our worksites around the country.”

The recent wet weather has also had an impact on some recently completed project sites.

“There are a number of sites across the central North Island area that have had new seal washed away by rain or seen bitumen bleed through the seal due to unexpected high temperatures,” says Campbell.

“These issues can also be the result of an ageing network, which our renewal programme is designed to help us get on top of.

“With three times the average rainfall in November, and significant downpours this month, we have simply been unable to work on our roads with consistency over the majority of the past two months.

“The weather has forced us to pause work on a number of road reconstruction sites as we lead up to the Christmas break. These sites will have a temporary seal put in place to ensure the site is passable over the two weeks crews are off-site,” says Campbell.

Contractors remain hopeful that along with the usual presents on Christmas Day, Santa might consider bringing some sunshine to the country.