Progress in Puhoi, but a long road ahead

Everything that can be done is being done – that was the assurance from Auckland Transport (AT) last week to rural residents frustrated by closed and damaged roads and a lack of official communication. However, AT admitted it would take many months to fix the extensive damage throughout the region and fully reopen roads, particularly around Ahuroa and Puhoi, where a public meeting was held on March 8.

AT’s stakeholder manager for north and west, Johan Swanepoel, said it would be nine months – or the end of the year –before repairs to Krippner Road in Puhoi were complete, with traffic management set to remain in place “until further notice”. And he said investigations were still continuing into the state of Ahuroa Road, predicting it would take at least another month to fully assess all the damage and decide the best way to repair it, before any rebuild could be carried out and completed. He said the condition of the road, which was fully closed for 750 metres west of J Tolhopf Road, presented “multiple challenges” for AT and other Auckland Council agencies.

“Not all the hard mahi can be seen on the ground, but I can assure you that there is a lot of work being done in the background, with geotechnical assessments being carried out and major planning for repairs to extensive road damage,” he said. “We thank residents for their patience while we do the work. We will keep the community informed throughout the process.

“We appreciate that it’s frustrating for residents when we cannot instantly answer their questions on what can be done to repair, rebuild and reopen every road. We can only assure the public that everything that can be done is being done to restore the roading network.”

AT said its main contractor Downer, 12 subcontractors and 35 diggers had been working around the clock to clear local roads and around 17,000 cubic metres – the equivalent of seven Olympic-sized swimming pools – of mud had been any new slips or damage throughout the region to ensure AT was kept aware of ongoing issues.

Info: Visit https://at.govt. nz/projects-roadworks/ road-works-disruptions/ auckland-flood-impactedroad-repair-and-recoveryprogramme/#NorthRural Ahuroa Road cannot be fixed as it is and needs to be realigned.

Ahuroa and Krippner Roads

– the nitty gritty from Auckland Transport on March 8

Ahuroa Road

AT does not believe that the road can be rebuilt on its existing alignment. Several possible new alignments through private property have been identified and are being investigated.

If AT proceeds with one of these options, land purchase will be required.

AT says land purchase can be a lengthy process and it does not know how long this will take.

“When we reach agreement in respect to the land purchase, we will be able to commence the physical work within three weeks.”

Krippner Road

There are 10 major under-slips on the sealed section of Krippner Road. Physical work will start this month to address the first of these sites at an existing spot where work had previously been due to start in February.

The other sites are currently undergoing investigation and design and the physical work is programmed to start in April and be completed over the remainder of this calendar year. The total value of this work is expected to be approximately $4 million.