Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency postponed the bridge closure planned for last night over the Ashburton River/Hakatere due to wet weather conditions.

The plan was to smooth the bridge deck to enable the speed restriction to be uplifted.

The next closure is now planned for Sunday evening – 11 pm, 20 June – through to 4 am Monday morning, 21 June. The speed allowed on the bridge will remain at 30km/hour in the meantime.

• If it is too wet Sunday, this bridge closure will shift to Monday night 21 June through to Tuesday morning, 11 pm to 4 am.
• Please check this traffic and travel page for updates on the night: https://www.journeys.nzta.govt.nz/traffic/regions/11

Overweight and over-dimension permit vehicle drivers need to continue using the alternate local roads at this stage.

Detour route for overweight and over-dimension permitted traffic in Ashburton District here: https://www.ashburtondc.govt.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0023/36626/20210616-Road-Closures-Map.pdf

Since the significant flooding of late May, the damaged pier had stabilised, as shown by monitoring and data analysis.

Waka Kotahi will also install electronic monitoring equipment on Sunday evening to allow remote monitoring of the structure which will avoid more traffic closures.

Timeline for repair

Waka Kotahi is aiming to complete the bridge pier repair in the next two months.

Waka Kotahi thanks all bridge users for their patience as this bridge investigation got underway and traffic management for everyone’s safety was put in place.

Plan ahead for a safe, enjoyable journey. Keep up to date with:

· Traffic updates: journeys.nzta.govt.nz/traffic

• Facebook: facebook.com/NZTAsouthisland
• Twitter Canterbury/West Coast: twitter.com/WakaKotahiCWC
• Journey planner: journeys.nzta.govt.nz
• Phone: 0800 4 HIGHWAYS (0800 44 44 49)

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