20 July 2018

Repair work to commence on SH2 Takitimu Drive side of the Waikareao Estuary pathway

The NZ Transport Agency advises repair work will begin on the Takitimu Drive side of the Waikareao Estuary pathway on Monday 23rd of July at 9am.

This is to repair damage which occurred to the pathway during a storm and king tide which hit Tauranga in early January 2018.

Bay of Plenty Journey Manager Nigel D’Ath says although we did some initial repair work to the pathway at the time of the event, it was only a temporary solution to allow the path to open to the public. The work we are doing now will reinforce the rock armouring on the sea wall, repair the undermined path and bridge supports.

“We aim to create a smooth, uniform surface over the 1.7km of affected pathway, which is between the Mobil Station near Chapel Street and where the path leaves the highway and heads into the open space park near Waihi Road”

Work will occur off peak between the hours of 9am – 4pm week days, and mobile message boards will keep motorists up to date with works.

The left hand shoulder of State Highway 2 (eastbound) will be closed for the duration of the repair work. The left hand lane of State Highway 2 in the same direction will be closed when materials and equipment are required to be moved within the site.

A temporary speed limit of 60km/h will apply to eastbound bound traffic when the lane closure is in effect.

“For safety the pathway will need to be closed while we carry out repairs. This is expected to take around 5 weeks and barriers will be in place at either end of the work zone during this time,” says Nigel.

While there is no formal pedestrian detour route, pedestrians and cyclists are able to use the existing local road and foot paths to cross SH2 at 11th Avenue and under the Chapel Street Viaduct, in order to access the cycle path on the inland (Cameron Road) side of SH2.

The NZ Transport Agency thanks motorists and shared pedestrian and cycleway users for their patience during this time.

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