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Storm-damaged Marlborough road repairs expected to come in under budget

The Ronga Road culvert on the road to French Pass, one of the many works completed as part of the Marlborough Roads Recovery programme. Photo: Supplied / Marlborough District Council More than half the roads across Marlborough damaged by storms in 2021 in recent years have been fixed at a cost of $134 million, with the total repair work expected to come in under budget. Heavy rain and flooding in 2021 damaged parts of Queen Charlotte Drive and Kenepuru Road along with roads in Northbank, Waihopai Valley and the Awatere Valley. The following year, a second storm doubled the damage, affecting 670 kilometres of road across the region. Kenepuru Road was closed to non-residents for more than two years after the storms, with the first section re-opening to the public in in September . Marlborough Roads transport recovery manager Steve Murrin said the storms resulted in 5649 faults on the roading network and more than half (3843) have been repaired. Murrin said there were 73 projects across the network currently under construction, with $149m of work still to be done. The majority of the repair work is being funded by Waka Kotahi NZTA. The Marlborough District Council made an application to the NZTA board for $141.4m, which the board agreed to fund 71 percent of, or $100.4m . It is hoped the construction sites on Queen Charlotte Drive and Picton/Port Underwood will be finished by the end of this year, French Pass by the middle of next year and Kenepuru by the end of 2027. Mayor Nadine Taylor said the quality of roads being built was impressive and had "exceeded expectations". "Bringing the programme in early will be a relief to residents and means they're seeing delivery of these new roads more quickly and putting up with a lot less disruption, which is incredibly valuable." The Marlborough Roads Recovery Team is a joint venture between NZTA, Marlborough Roads, Fulton Hogan and HEB Construction. It was set up in August 2021 following the July storm to repair and restore the network. It is one of the largest roading recovery projects in the country. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.