The Kāwhia Road is expected to fully re-open next week as repairs to a slip on a narrow part of the road just downhill from the lookout are wrapping up, Waka Kotahi Waikato system manager Cara Lauder says.
Bad weather delayed getting both lanes of the only sealed road into Kāwhia open until next week.
Three truck-loads of concrete are booked for the site tomorrow and the road will reopen from 5.30pm that day at a single lane for the weekend and into Monday and Tuesday while finishing works are done.
Contractors expect both lanes to be open to traffic from 5.30pm on Tuesday.
“This has been a very challenging project for our staff and contractors, including some specialist geotechnical design and repair teams, so to get this resolved within months of the damage occurring is great for everyone involved and the community and businesses affected,” Cara said.
Cracks in the road and subsidence were found in February, leading to a lane closure while a fix was investigated and designed. Repairs started on April 11 requiring lengthy day-time closures during the working week, with traffic allowed through around lunchtime for an hour.
“Our thanks go to all road users who have been impacted by the day-time closures – we understand this has been a major inconvenience, but the worksite was so narrow there was no way to have workers, trucks and drilling rigs on the site while traffic was passing,” Cara said.
The site was stabilised through soil-nailing, which strengthens weak and unstable ground. Forty-four 9-metre-long steel bars were driven into the bank below the road to stabilise it and form a platform for a rebuild. About 800 vehicles a day use Kāwhia Rd and around 13 percent are trucks.
