Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency says recent road rebuilding work on SH2 between Rogers Road and Onehunga Road at Bay View, Napier, has not met expectations and will need to be rectified.

The work included rebuilding the road base, sealing the surface and line marking and has been underway since late January. As this remedial work requires warm, dry weather, it will need to wait until the next spring/summer construction season.

Central North Island regional maintenance and operations manager Jaclyn Hankin says Waka Kotahi is aware of concerns about the repairs and apologises to local residents and those who travel through Bay View regularly.

“While we acknowledge the difficulties caused by an unseasonably wet construction season, the impacts of Covid-19 on staffing, high traffic volumes with no alternative routes, and the need to maintain traffic in both directions on a busy section of state highway, both Waka Kotahi and our contractor for the works, Higgins, agree the finished quality of the work falls short of what we expect and will need to be rectified, at the contractor’s cost.

“Our contractors will continue to monitor the road over winter and it is likely that further temporary repairs will be needed to help ensure the safety of the road until the permanent repair work can be undertaken during the warmer, drier spring and summer months.

“We will be working with the contractors closely next construction season to ensure this work is completed as a priority and to the required standard. This will also incorporate a range of quality assurance testing, including vibration tests to ensure the repair has not resulted in an increase in vibrations caused by traffic for surrounding properties, which was a concern raised by nearby residents prior to the works starting.

“We know local residents and people who travel through the area regularly will be frustrated and upset, but we also know they want – and deserve – a safe, fit-for-purpose road. We are 100 percent committed to ensuring this is what they get and have demonstrated we won’t accept anything less.”