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Source: New Zealand Transport Agency – Press Release/Statement:
Headline: Tawa on-ramp and off-ramp closed SH1
Emergency Services and are currently attending the blaze and NZTA are asking motorists to avoid the area if possible.
An update will be posted on our website and social media pages as soon as the work is completed.
The NZ Transport Agency wants to thank road users for their understanding and patience.
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Source: New Zealand Transport Agency – Press Release/Statement:
Headline: Old Kopu Bridge ownership passed on
After several years of consultation and negotiations, the Society presented a business case to NZ Transport Agency representatives and a legal agreement has been reached. The deal will see ownership of the heritage-listed bridge handed to the Trust in conjunction with the Society.
The central swing-span bridge across the Waihou River opened in 1928 and has been idle since the opening of the new two-lane Kopu Bridge in December 2011. As the bridge is no longer part of the national highway network the Transport Agency can no longer fund any future maintenance or upgrades.
Transport System Manager Karen Boyt says the agreement means the Trust will take financial responsibility for the bridge.
“The old Kopu Bridge is a historic structure, and we recognise it’s past, engineering legacy and early contribution to regional economic development.”
Ms Boyt says the Transport Agency has heard the views of many people ahead of the decision about the bridge’s future.
“Over the past years we have engaged widely with local councils, Heritage NZ, and the community to evaluate options and have used an independent consultant to facilitate part of that process.”
“We are pleased to have reached this agreement and we hope to see the bridge restored to something that the public can get enjoyment out of,” Ms Boyt says.
Bridge Trust chair Ross Bayer says they are delighted with the outcome.
“We are very excited about the opportunity to restore the bridge and open it as a public pedestrian and cycle way.
“We are aware that the hard work is about to start now and we are up for the challenge,” Mr Bayer says.
The deal is subject to the Transport Agency receiving yearly reports for five years from the Trust on the operation of the bridge. The Trust will also provide conservation, public health and safety, navigation of the Waihou River and engineering and maintenance plans.
If within the five years the Trust indicates that they cannot manage the project, NZTA can take back ownership of the bridge.
For more information go to: http://www.nzta.govt.nz/projects/kopu-bridge-replacement/
The signing of the document with from left to right, Barry Dowsett, Mark Ensor and Karen Boyt from NZTA with Ross Bayer signing on behalf of the Kopu Bridge and Community Trust. Then there are some of the Trustees, again left to right Kim Buchanan, Anne Stewart Ball, Wati Ngamane. Then Patron of the Trust, Jeanette Fitzsimons and; lastly Gary Blake from Historic Kopu Bridge Society.
NZTA Waikato Transport System Manager Karen Boyt and Ross Bayer from the Kopu Bridge and Community Trust.
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Source: New Zealand Transport Agency – Press Release/Statement:
Headline: Mid and South Canterbury highway and bridge work delays this week and next week
Stop/go traffic management and a temporary speed restriction will be in pace while contractors inspect five state highway bridges this week. Delays are expected on SH1 in Ashburton today (Monday, 19 March), SH1 in Temuka and Timaru (for Port Traffic) tomorrow (Tuesday, 20 March.)
“The inspections are carried out from a truck with a mobile platform to allow workers to access areas under the bridge. Vehicles will be directed around the inspection area with stop/go traffic management,” says Transport Agency Network Manager John Keenan.
Contractors will monitor traffic to ensure delays are as short as possible during these inspections, however motorists are advised to allow at least an extra 15 minutes for their journey during this time. The work is weather dependent.
Bridge inspections will continue on SH82 Hakataramea Highway next week at the two new Waitaki River Bridges near Kurow, Monday 26 and Tuesday 27 March from 8am to 5pm each day.
“Thanks to all drivers and road users for building in some extra time while this work is completed,” says Mr Keenan.
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Source: New Zealand Transport Agency – Press Release/Statement:
Headline: Bad weather delays start of Mata Bridges road repairs on SH1 in Northland
The repairs and resurfacing of the three Mata Bridges between Oakleigh and Ruakaka was due to start on Sunday 18 March and take four nights. It would have required stop/go traffic management from 7-9pm and a full closure of the state highway from 9pm to 5am.
“The weather forecast is not looking good for Sunday night and we need fine weather to do the work. So we’re making an early decision to postpone the work and road closures,” says the Transport Agency’s System Manager Steve Mutton.
A decision on whether to start the work on Monday night will be made around Midday on Monday.
For the latest on the Mata Bridge road works, road closure times and detour routes, go to:
For Auckland and Northland
Check the latest weather conditions and warnings here:
http://www.metservice.com/national/home
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Source: New Zealand Transport Agency – Press Release/Statement:
Headline: Bad weather delays start of Mata Bridges road repairs on SH1 in Northland
The repairs and resurfacing of the three Mata Bridges between Oakleigh and Ruakaka was due to start on Sunday 18 March and take four nights. It would have required stop/go traffic management from 7-9pm and a full closure of the state highway from 9pm to 5am.
“The weather forecast is not looking good for Sunday night and we need fine weather to do the work. So we’re making an early decision to postpone the work and road closures,” says the Transport Agency’s System Manager Steve Mutton.
A decision on whether to start the work on Monday night will be made around Midday on Monday.
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Source: New Zealand Transport Agency – Press Release/Statement:
Headline: SH60, Takaka Hill, to open to truck and trailer units from midday Tuesday, 20 March
“This will be the first time these truck and trailer units have been over the Takaka Hill since ex-tropical-cyclone Gita closed the road due to multiple slips on 20 February,” says NZ Transport Agency Network Manager Frank Porter.
Crews have been resurfacing damaged sections of the highway in recent days, after they had been widened to accommodate truck and trailer units. The widening has provided extra lane width needed to safely navigate some of the tighter corners, damaged due to slips and washouts.
“The crews have worked incredibly hard to reach this milestone,” says Mr Porter. “We’ve tested the route to make sure that a range of truck configurations can safely navigate their way through. Drivers will still need to take extra care around tight corners.
“We know that the restriction of no truck and trailer units has had an impact on Golden Bay businesses and the community. We know this news that the road will be open to them from Tuesday midday as part of the freight convoys and the normal morning and evening convoys will come as a welcome relief.”
Motorcyclists are asked to be considerate of all the people using State Highway 60, Takaka Hill Road, as part of the current convoys. “It is critical for the safe operation of the convoys, that everyone including motorcyclists obey the rules,” says Mr Porter. “This means being considerate of other road users by keeping their position in the convoy and not speeding or overtaking other vehicles.”
Motorcyclists are asked to:
“This week we’ve seen an average of 1000 vehicles travel the hill each day with 1900 on Sundays and the number is steadily rising, which is great news for Golden Bay,” says Mr Porter. “The road is becoming more and more reliable and we are doing everything we can to enable tourists, local people and the freight industry access to this beautiful part of New Zealand.
“We have received a number of queries about the opening hours for Easter and beyond and we are actively looking at how we can extend and alter the hours to better accommodate people’s needs, while still progressing with the repair work. We are using the time between traffic openings to get the road repaired quickly, as daylight saving ends 1 April and winter months are not far off.”
The Transport Agency is aiming to open up the road (single lane access will remain) to be used without convoys, outside of the daytime construction work, ie outside of 8 am to 5 pm Monday to Saturday, including overnight. It is intended that the section of SH60 through the slip sites will be managed by traffic signals, until two lanes can be reinstated. However, this planned timetable to move the convoy system to signals is dependent on good weather in coming weeks.
Updated when arrangements change – www.journeys.nzta.govt.nz/traffic/areawarnings/202314
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Source: New Zealand Transport Agency – Press Release/Statement:
Headline: Hackathon winner puts focus on improving skills of restricted licence drivers
The team proposed creating an app to incentivise safe driving behaviour in teenagers on restricted licences. The team called “Licence Me” worked through the weekend, competing with 11 other groups in Auckland to develop and pitch their ideas for making New Zealand roads safer.
NZ Transport Agency Director of Safety and Environment Harry Wilson led the panel of judges and said they were looking for the concept that would make the biggest difference; was easy to do; and was technically feasible.
Licence Me tackled the problem of young drivers on restricted licences. In their pitch to judges, Licence Me said restricted drivers represent 4.6% of the driving population but were involved in 14% of fatal and serious injury crashes.
Licence Me estimated their concept could save 55 young lives a year by increasing the time they spent behind the wheel with feedback from experienced drivers so they learnt good habits early. The team proposed developing an app to track driver progress that focussed on controlling speed, braking, accelerating and cornering. The incentive for young drivers would be to learn good driving skills and reduce their time on a restricted licence from 18 to 12 months.
The Licence Me team had 10 members – 7 from a Hamilton firm who came to the Hackathon to “have some fun on a team-building exercise”, said group leader Jourdan Templeton, the Chief Technical Officer of Aware Group, a company that uses data and machine learning to predict the rate of student drop-outs from university courses.
They met a road safety engineer from Christchurch and two Auckland students at the Hackathon to create their winning team.
“We have the capability to build the app we proposed,” said Mr Templeton.
Mr Wilson said the theme of the Hackathon, “Save One More Life,” was especially appropriate on a day when two teenagers died in a road crash at Amberley.
“That news really reinforced what we are doing here and why we’re doing it,” he said.
“I’ve been moved by the passion, the energy, the creativity and the ideas of the teams over the weekend. I thank all 120 participants for giving up their weekend to come here and represent all of New Zealand in a bid to find new hi-tech ways of making our roads safer for everyone,” Mr Wilson said.
The Transport Agency will work with the Licence Me team to develop their concept into a marketable proposition.
Mr Wilson said the Transport Agency would talk to other teams about developing their concepts.
Second place went to the “Safe Sense” team for a concept that involved placing laser sensors and cameras at corners to warn drivers of vehicles crossing the centreline. Safe Sense told the judges that 50% of crashes occur on corners.
Third place went to the “Crash Test Dummies” team for a phone app concept that would show drivers in real time how fast they were travelling on a particular road and warn them to slow down if they were going faster than the average speed of other road users.
The Transport Agency’s Director of Connected Journeys, Martin McMullan, thanked major sponsors, Datacom, Microsoft, Amazon web services, IBM, Google Cloud, Consigna Cloud and Uber for helping make the event happen.
The Transport Agency plans another Hackathon in September.
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Source: New Zealand Transport Agency – Press Release/Statement:
Headline: State Highway 2 in western Bay of Plenty closed after crash
The NZ Transport Agency is advising people to please delay their journeys or avoid the area if possible.
People can stay up to date by calling 0800 4 HIGHWAYS or they can check for state highway closures on the website:
www.journeys.nzta.govt.nz/traffic/
We are also on Twitter and Facebook:
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Source: New Zealand Transport Agency – Press Release/Statement:
Headline: Hackathon begins the search for new hi-tech road safety ideas
The 48-hour event brings together volunteers with diverse skills, interests and perspectives to solve problems in a competitive, time-pressured environment.
15 teams have formed and have until Sunday afternoon to work up and present their concept to a judging panel.
120 people signed up for the Hackathon on a first-in first served basis, with about 90 more on a waiting list. They include developers, tech experts and people with engineering or transport backgrounds. Some just have a personal motivation for improving road safety.
“We are in for a really exciting time as we engage with everyday transport users who are also really smart thinkers and technology innovators. There is no limit to what they might come up with,” says the Transport Agency’s Safety and Environment Director Harry Wilson.
Prizes will be awarded to the top three concepts, but the Transport Agency reserves the right to work with any of the teams to help them develop their ideas to the next stage.
The teams will retain the intellectual property of their ideas, with the Transport Agency helping to market their work in the interests of road safety. The Transport Agency will be asking the teams to keep its “Safe System” approach front of mind as they build their solutions. The Safe System approach aims for a more forgiving road system that takes human fallibility and vulnerability into account.
“We can help with resources and by introducing them to others in the innovation and technology communities. We may be able to offer financial support to help develop a prototype or take the idea to the next level,” says Mr Wilson.
“We don’t know what we’ll get and we’re open to all ideas, but we’re looking for problem solving with a clear focus on the outcome – preventing crashes and saving lives.”
“The Hackathon’s theme is “Save One More Life”. Last year 379 people died on our roads, and every one of those lives lost is a tragedy. We’re looking for new ways to make our roads safer and improve driver behaviour.”
“It’s about unleashing the potential of technology to reduce the road toll,” says Mr Wilson.
The Hackathon has some heavyweight technology companies offering their support and resources to the teams over the weekend, including Microsoft, Google Cloud, IBM, Uber and Consegna Cloud.
The Hackathon is based at the Transport Agency’s Innovation Centre at 105 Cook Street in Auckland.
The teams have 10 minutes each on Sunday afternoon to present their concepts to the judges, starting at 1pm.
More information about the Hackathon.
More info about the safe system here.
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Source: New Zealand Transport Agency – Press Release/Statement:
Headline: Cambridge to Piarere safety improvements get underway
The safety improvements include adding roadside safety barriers in high-risk areas to stop vehicles running off the road and a wide centreline to keep vehicles apart. Minor improvements will also be made to some intersections along the route.
NZ Transport Agency Regional System Manager Karen Boyt says the safety improvements will help prevent people being killed or seriously injured in crashes on the route.
“This road is currently the main link between Auckland and Tauranga and Hamilton and Tauranga but too many people are losing their lives on the road,” Ms Boyt says.
“Between January 2005 and December 2014 nine people died and 29 were seriously injured on this stretch of the road. Safety barriers and wide centrelines are relatively easy to install but can be the difference between life and death if someone makes a mistake on the road.”
The short-term safety improvements will be carried out by Splice Construction on behalf of the Transport Agency and are expected to be completed by the end of summer 2019. A map of the planned safety improvements is available at www.nzta.govt.nz/c2p.
The project is part of the government’s $600m Safe Roads and Roadsides programme underway to reduce deaths and seriously injuries on NZ rural state highways
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