The two-month closure of State Highway 1 between Tūrangi to Waiouru – including the Desert Rd – for road rebuilding and repairs has been delayed a week to “try and reduce the impact on people’s summer holiday journeys”, Waka Kotahi New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) says.
The key North Island route was initially to be closed from January 6 but will now be closed from January 13.
“We appreciate this is a very critical piece of road, so while we can’t postpone for long, we understand summer holiday journeys are important and no-one wants to be stuck in their vehicle longer than necessary,” NZTA regional manager of maintenance and operations Roger Brady said in a statement.
The section is in “one of the worst conditions” in the Waikato region and is also “one of the most challenging to fix”, he added.
“The alpine environment and potential for a cold snap means we have to do this closure in the peak summer months because the ground temperature needs to be at 13 degrees minimum to carry out pavement works.”
Brady said contractors would be able to complete the work “more efficiently and safely” with a full closure compared with stop/go traffic management.
“We can use more invasive construction methodology, which would not be possible under stop/go traffic management – meaning SH1 will be quickly brought up to a higher standard.
“If we attempted this amount of work under stop/go, road users would experience at least 8 weeks of disruption a year over the next four summers – in addition to a full closure for the bridge deck replacement.”
NZTA said it is likely motorists would be detoured on SH41, SH47, SH4, SH49 and back onto SH1. The detour would add around 30 minutes to journeys.
“It’s not unfamiliar to regular road users in this area, as this is the detour we use every time we do full closures of the Desert Rd.”
