Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency said today crews had made good progress removing material around the Muddy Creek slip on State Highway 6 near Makarora after heavy rains closed the road last month.
While the work has been going on to clear slip debris, convoys have been operating two or three times a day to allow traffic through from either side.
Nicole Felts, Journey Manager for Waka Kotahi, said they were almost ready to end the convoys.
“SH6 through Makarora and past the Blue Pools will reopen at 4.30pm on Friday, October 6, using traffic lights to manage one-way passage that night and over the weekend,” Felts said.
“From Monday at 8am, we will manage that short section of highway using Stop/Go traffic management Monday to Friday daytime hours, so drivers don’t need to meet scheduled convoy times from Monday morning.
“Overnight, when traffic volumes are much smaller, after 4.30pm each day, the traffic signals will be switched on again to manage the one-way passage over the slip area.”
However, she said the area was now more vulnerable to future closures.
“We need people to understand that this situation may recur when it rains again in this catchment.
“Thousands of cubic metres of material have been deposited all around the creek bed. On either side of the highway surrounding the bridge, this material is between a metre and three metres higher than the road itself.
“That is why we need to deepen the creek channel in coming days to help carry water away swiftly, rather than block up and overtop at the bridge and close the highway in the next rain."
She said Waka Kotahi was looking at ways to get "as early warning as possible that the creek is rising and/or land is moving".
"This could include a temporary weather station at Cameron’s Flat as well as a river level monitor on or near Muddy Creek bridge,” she said.
“We also need to install appropriate warning signage and/or temporary speed restrictions through the area and there will be more frequent on-site inspections of this area.”
She said there were still essential works ongoing at the site, including:
Shoulder scouring repairs - where the creek meets the road.
Bridge repairs including guardrail replacement.
More slip material to be moved away.
Road surfacing repairs all around the slip area.
She said work would continue in the area for several weeks, so people needed to factor in time a slightly longer journey.
- ODT Online
