The planned three-month closure of a bridge on the main Catlins scenic route during a busy part of the tourist season will severely hit businesses, locals say.
The Papatowai Bridge over the Tahakopa River will be closed for about 12 weeks from February 29.
A 19km detour off the main highway via Tahakopa, all on unsealed roads, will add about 30 minutes' travel for motorists driving to Papatowai from the north.
Clutha District Council service delivery manager Jules Witt said the concrete bridge's deck needed to be strengthened and its piles had to be repaired.
The upgrade required work in the river, which could only be carried out during times of low summer flows.
It was critical the work on the bridge happened soon otherwise weight restrictions would have to be imposed, he said.
People driving rental cars will be restricted by the detour, as many rental companies do not allow travel on unsealed roads.
To get to the lower Catlins from Balclutha, travellers in rental cars could have to travel as far as Invercargill to ensure they remained on sealed roads.
When the ODT visited Papatowai yesterday, most people spoken to said they were concerned about the impact the closure would have on businesses, though many were unwilling to speak publicly about it.
They expected tourists in rental cars could simply decide not to take the route and go the long way around the area to go south or north instead.
One business owner, who did not want to be identified, said he was ‘‘irate'' and it was a ‘‘right royal pain''.
He used the bridge multiple times throughout the day and the extra travel would cost him both time and petrol.
He also wondered how emergency services would cope on the unsealed roads on the detour.
The man said the repairs should have been done during the winter when there would be less traffic.
Mr Witt said he was aware of residents' concerns and apologised for the impact the closure would have on local businesses and visitors to the Catlins, but resource consent conditions meant work in rivers must be carried out before the end of April.
There would be ongoing discussions with the contractor to minimise the closure, he said.
Fulton Hogan contract manager Ian Stead said it was not possible to carry out the work during winter months because of the weather then.
‘‘It's much more difficult to work in the ice and the rain.''
The decision was made to start work now so it could be completed as efficiently as possible.
‘‘It's a balance of productivity and inconvenience to the travellers,'' he said.
There was also a chance the work could take longer than 12 weeks, he said.
There were 30 bridges being repaired in the Clutha District in the same contract, including five that would have to be closed.
But the Papatowai Bridge closure would have the most impact, as it was on the Southern Scenic Route.
Notifications about the other closures would be released in the coming weeks as work began.
-by Samuel White
