Latest news with #NorthlandExpressway
NZ Herald
24-04-2025
- Climate
- NZ Herald
Firefighters are tackling a large fire in Wairau Valley.
Northland Expressway announcement. Video / NZ Herald Christopher Luxon visits Kiwi troops in the UK, NZ's economic recovery expected to be gradual and uneven and fears of more exclusion to gender minorities. Dr Erik Monasterio spoke at the coronial inquest into the death of Olympic cyclist Olivia Podmore in Christchurch District Court on April 22, 2025. MetService National Weather Update: April 22 - April 26. Video / MetService A special mass at St Patrick's cathedral was held to remember the passing of Pope Francis. Attendees gathered to pay their respects and celebrate his contributions to the church. Detective Inspector Glenn Baldwin will speak to media at the scene on St Johns Road. The world has gathered in mourning after the passing of Pope Francis. Proceedings in motion after Pope's death, a monthly snapshot not representative of police recruitment and concern of decline in teacher numbers. Flockhill luxury lodge in Canterbury. Video / Supplied A major new Foodstuffs supermarket is taking shape in Pt Chevalier, designed by Wingate Architects. Video \ Jason Dorday. Reporter Penelope is at the Lost Dog Disco, a spectacular light and sound installation for people and their favourite four-legged friends to rock out. A West Auckland family is reeling after a fire tore through their Henderson home on Sunday night, leaving them homeless - and uninsured. Video / Supplied The Kiwi journalist was out for dinner with her fiancé and friends on Saturday when her car was sideswiped. Video / @wilshrimpton Reporter Tom is at the Beach Hop with drifting legend Fanga Dan and Carter, a lucky local fan who gets to go for a fang. Ex-tropical cyclone Tam continues to hit New Zealand. Frustration over alert systems in Auckland. Russia announces unexpected Easter truce with Ukraine. Video / NZ Herald
Otago Daily Times
23-04-2025
- Automotive
- Otago Daily Times
Major change of route for Northland Expressway
By Peter de Graaf of RNZ A replacement for State Highway 1 over Northland's notorious Brynderwyn Hills will be built just to the east of the current road - a major change from the original plan of building the new four-lane highway well to the west of the slip-prone hills. Transport Minister Chris Bishop and Regional Development Minister Shane Jones announced the NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi's preferred route for a Northland Expressway on Wednesday, stretching about 100km from the motorway's current endpoint at Warkworth all the way to Whangārei. The biggest surprise is that NZTA has dropped its earlier preference for a route that would have skirted around the western side of the troublesome Brynderwyn Hills. Instead, the new route will, like the current highway, go over the top of the Brynderwyns, but to the east of the existing route. Bishop said the Brynderwyn Hills section was highly challenging, due to the steep terrain and unstable geology. "Alternative options looked at western routes but following further investigation, NZTA has reassessed and found a near-east alignment close to State Highway 1. This is a more direct route with more predictable geology that can be managed through engineering design," he said. A timeline and potential cost for the project are not yet known, but the full Northland Expressway is expected to be one of the most expensive infrastructure projects in New Zealand history. Last year the Infrastructure Commission warned the project could consume $1 of every $10 spent by the government on infrastructure during the next 25 years. Plans for a new route around the Brynderwyns were put on ice in 2017 but revived with urgency in the wake of Cyclone Gabrielle in early 2023, when the highway was closed on-and-off for months due to slips and reconstruction. During the closures, traffic between Auckland and Northland was forced to use narrow back roads via Waipū, or the much longer State Highway 14 around the west coast. Even the $85 million repair job carried out on the unstable south side of the Brynderwyns in 2024 is expected to last only another seven to 10 years. A slip triggered by Cyclone Tam during Easter weekend, which blocked one lane and reportedly damaged a car, was another reminder of the route's instability. Also announced this morning were the preferred routes for two other sections of the Northland Expressway. Bishop said the 26km section from Warkworth to Te Hana, bypassing the summertime traffic jams of Wellsford, would be built mostly to the east of the current highway. Italian company Webuild confirmed earlier this year it would bid to build and operate that section of the Northern Expressway as a public-private partnership. The section of highway from the northern side of the Brynderwyns to Port Marsden Highway at Ruakākā would run west of the existing highway. A preferred route for the northernmost section, a notoriously crash-prone stretch of highway between Ruakākā and Whangārei, had yet to be determined. The highway through urban Whangārei would retain its current route but would be widened in places.
RNZ News
22-04-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Northland Expressway preferred routes: New road over Brynderwyn Hills to be built
A replacement for State Highway 1 over Northland's notorious Brynderwyn Hills will be built just to the east of the current road - a major change from the original plan of building the new four-lane highway well to the west of the slip-prone hills. Transport Minister Chris Bishop and Regional Development Minister Shane Jones announced Waka Kotahi's preferred route for a Northland Expressway on Wednesday, stretching about 100km from the motorway's current endpoint at Warkworth all the way to Whangārei. The biggest surprise is that NZTA has dropped its earlier preference for a route that would have skirted around the western side of the troublesome Brynderwyn Hills. A slip on Brynderwyn Hills. Photo: Supplied / Waka Kotahi Instead, the new route will, like the current highway, go over the top of the Brynderwyns, but to the east of the existing route. Repairs to SH1 over the Brynderwyn Hills after Cyclone Gabrielle cost $85 million and took months to complete. Photo: NZTA / Waka Kotahi Bishop said the Brynderwyn Hills section was highly challenging, due to the steep terrain and unstable geology. "Alternative options looked at western routes but following further investigation, NZTA has reassessed and found a near-east alignment close to State Highway 1. This is a more direct route with more predictable geology that can be managed through engineering design," he said. A slip on Brynderwyn Hills. Photo: Supplied / Waka Kotahi A timeline and potential cost for the project are not yet known, but the full Northland Expressway is expected to be one of the most expensive infrastructure projects in New Zealand history. Last year the Infrastructure Commission warned the project could consume $1 of every $10 spent by the Government on infrastructure during the next 25 years. Plans for a new route around the Brynderwyns were put on ice in 2017 but revived with urgency in the wake of Cyclone Gabrielle in early 2023, when the highway was closed on-and-off for months due to slips and reconstruction. During the closures, traffic between Auckland and Northland was forced to use narrow back roads via Waipū, or the much longer State Highway 14 around the west coast. Even the $85 million repair job carried out on the unstable south side of the Brynderwyns in 2024 is expected to last only another seven to 10 years. A slip triggered by Cyclone Tam during Easter weekend, which blocked one lane and reportedly damaged a car, was another reminder of the route's instability. Also announced this morning were the preferred routes for two other sections of the Northland Expressway. Bishop said the 26km section from Warkworth to Te Hana, bypassing the summertime traffic jams of Wellsford, would be built mostly to the east of the current highway. Italian company Webuild confirmed earlier this year it would bid to build and operate that section of the Northern Expressway as a public-private partnership. The section of highway from the northern side of the Brynderwyns to Port Marsden Highway at Ruakākā would run west of the existing highway. A preferred route for the northernmost section, a notoriously crash-prone stretch of highway between Ruakākā and Whangārei, had yet to be determined. The highway through urban Whangārei would retain its current route but would be widened in places. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Scoop
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Brynderwyns Route Announcement Welcomed In Northland
The Government's announcement of a preferred route for the Brynderwyn Hills is a critical step forward in transforming Northland's route security and resilience, says the chair of the Northland Regional Transport Committee (RTC). Commenting today (subs: Weds 23 April) on the announcement by Transport Minister Chris Bishop and Regional Development Minister Shane Jones, RTC Chair Joe Carr says he and his fellow committee members are thrilled by the announcement as a crucial move to address long-standing issues with the current Brynderwyn Hills route. "Sorting out issues with the Brynderwyn Hills has been talked about for decades, and our Regional Transport Committee has been working for many years to support progress on a better corridor," says RTC Chair Carr. "I want to acknowledge the coalition government for making the Brynderwyn Hills route a priority as part of the Northland Expressway," says Chair Carr. "We don't want to see any more money put into detour routes - we want to see money spent on long-term solutions, so we're really pleased to see the government making real progress." Today's announcement of a preferred corridor for four-laning between Te Hana and Port Marsden Highway would see the Brynderwyn corridor shifted slightly to the east of its current route. "This is a green-fields route, which would minimise traffic disruption during its construction," he says. "I want to also acknowledge the local engineers that have worked to help identify the new route through some really challenging terrain and variable geology, and who gave their time free of charge to help secure a more resilient transport network and help keep people and goods moving in Northland. "We're looking forward to seeing the preferred route confirmed in a few months' time and this work getting under way as a matter of urgency."
NZ Herald
22-04-2025
- Business
- NZ Herald
Northland Expressway preferred routes: Government eyes new road over Brynderwyns, rather than bypass
'The Brynderwyn Hills is a very challenging section due to the steepness of terrain and quality of the geology.' Bishop said NZTA had considered alternative western options but after reassessment, had found 'a near east alignment close to SH1'. 'This is a more direct route with more predictable geology that can be managed through engineering design.' Bishop told The Mike Hosking Breakfast this morning that procurement for the first section - continuing the current expressway north of Auckland from Warkworth to Te Hana - would begin mid to late next year. He could not yet say the timeline for the section encompassing the Brynderwyns, but answered 'absolutely, yes' when Hosking, 60, asked if the overall project would be completed in his lifetime. Bishop acknowledged costs could increase over the project's timeline, but said a lot of work was being done to avoid that. 'This is undoubtedly a challenging project ...[but when complete] the Northland Expressway will be transformational, like the Waikato Expressway.' 'More resilient transport' The Brynderwyn Hills, about 45km south of Whangārei, have been subject to ongoing closures since severe weather in early 2023. Last year, the highway was closed for about four months as NZTA repaired numerous slips. Over Easter, a landslip on Brynderwyn Hills badly damaged cars and blocked part of SH1 as the Auckland and Northland regions were battered by heavy rain. Regional Development Minister Shane Jones said the new expressway would better withstand severe weather and provide a more resilient transport network to keep people and goods moving and reduce travel time. 'This transport infrastructure is a key point in the New Zealand First-National coalition agreement,' Jones said. 'The Northland corridor is a top priority for the Government and we are working quickly to deliver this vital connection to help Northland's economy grow and its communities thrive.' Once fully complete, the Northland Expressway is estimated to be one of New Zealand's most expensive infrastructure projects. The Infrastructure Commission has estimated the project will consume $1 in every $10 spent by the Government on infrastructure over the next 25 years. This excludes maintenance and renewals. The Herald reported on the commission's findings in September, including warnings from the commission that the road's price tag would make up a large proportion of the pool of capital intended to be spent on all other central government infrastructure such as roads, hospitals, schools, defence and justice. The roading project, one of the Roads of National Significance, will be delivered as a Public-Private Partnership (PPP). The Government sought investors to help build the first section of the expresswa y at the recent inaugural Investment Summit, where attendees included firms that collectively had more than $6 trillion under management. At the summit, large Italian firm Webuild confirmed it would bid to build and run the first 26km section of the expressway, with the company's head of PPPs Guido Cacciaguerra declaring to media: 'The Italians are coming back'. The expressway has been divided into three sections: 1) Warkworth to Te Hana; 2) Te Hana to Port Marsden Highway; 3) Port Marsden Highway to Whangārei. The first section will connect the new expressway north of Auckland, which now ends at Warkworth, to Te Hana. It will include an 850m twin-bore tunnel in the Dome Valley and interchanges at Warkworth, Wellsford and Te Hana. For section two, the preferred corridor is a new route east of SH1 between Te Hana and the Brynderwyn Hills, then weaving to the east near the current SH1 at the Brynderwyn Hills and then to the west of SH1 between the Brynderwyn Hills and Port Marsden Highway. For Port Marsden Highway to Whangārei, the preferred option is a new road near SH1 between Port Marsden Highway and State Highway 15 Loop Rd and a widened SH1 corridor approaching urban Whangārei. Bishop said the highway would be 'a genuinely transformational' chance to boost jobs and growth in the area.
