Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency is aware that the significant delays on State Highway 2 between Ōmokoroa and Bethlehem are causing frustration.
Both Tauranga City Council and Waka Kotahi issued advisories last week letting road users know peak time congestion issues on this stretch of SH2 are set to continue for some time yet.
There are planned works underway in the area, and to minimise disruption both lanes are open during the day with a 50km/h speed in place, and the Waka Kotahi repair work is being done at night. (More detail below.)
'SH2 is an incredibly sensitive piece of road and any work near or on this road is seeing changes in traffic flow,” says Waka Kotahi maintenance and operations regional manager Rob Campbell.
'The pressure on this road has been felt for some time. From what was once a rural road passing through a few settlements, it has developed into a busy commuter and freight route.
'The main cause of the current congestion appears to be the sheer volume of traffic putting pressure on the network. There has been increase of more than 6000 vehicles per day added to this corridor in the last 10 years.
'Another contributing factor is an apparent shift in commuter habits. Our traffic data analytics show that people are staggering the time they travel on SH2 so we're seeing a shift in peak travel, which used to be 6am-9am, is now more like 6am - 10-10.30am,” Mr Campbell says.
In addition, the kiwifruit season is underway and some alternative routes are closed concentrating congestion on the highway.
'We appreciate any delay to travel is causing frustration and thank people for their patience.”
Work underway between Wairoa Bridge and Bethlehem:
The work underway since Sunday, May 14, is part of the Waka Kotahi annual maintenance programme. It's a major rehabilitation of State Highway 2.
The work is being completed at night and includes completely rebuilding and asphalting the road surface between the Wairoa Bridge and the Bethlehem roundabout.
The planned road closure tomorrow night has now been cancelled due to weather warnings in place for the Bay of Plenty.
The remaining night-time road closures are:
Wednesday, May 24, (existing)
Sunday, May 28, (new)
Light vehicles will be detoured via Wairoa Road, Crawford Road and Poripori Road, through to State Highway 29.
Heavy vehicles will be stacked either side of the bridge and piloted through at set intervals.
Between the nights of the closures, up to and including Thursday, June 1, night works will continue between the Wairoa Bridge and Bethlehem under Stop/Go traffic management.
For more information check Journey Planner (journeys.nzta.govt.nz).
8 comments
Why?
Posted on 17-05-2023 16:57 | By fair game
I just don't understand why there can't be a major focus on this, working every night to get the job completed, instead of working 2 nights per week for the foreseeable future. Would love to have that explained. Petrol is so expensive, and people sitting in idling cars is bad for the wallet, and the environment. Not to mention lost productivity from workers trying to get to work. Come on Waka Kotahi - sort it out!!!
Give us a break
Posted on 17-05-2023 21:32 | By Samwell
Why don’t all these omokoroa commuters work from home or ride their bike into town? Leave the roads for those who actually need it - truck drivers and tradies.
Disorganised chaos!
Posted on 17-05-2023 22:39 | By Ben Dover
Whoever is in charge of this dogs dinner of an attempt to organise these roadworks should be sacked for incompetence. Third world countries are better than this!
What a joke!
Posted on 18-05-2023 07:29 | By Wigan
The frustration here is not really about the surface repairs! We all know they need to be done and in an ideal world will only be temporary. The problem is NZTA admitting to the huge increase in traffic over the past 10 years & here we are 1 year in to a 5 year project to half way fix it. That's the bit that is hard to swallow.
Absolute shambles!
Posted on 18-05-2023 09:14 | By Angelfish
It's an absolute shambles whoever decided to do this and for them to say that it is because of the kiwi pickers season that is causing a lot of the delays, what a dumb thing to say. It should not take me an hr and half at 6.15am to get from Apata to Mount Maunganui, bearing in mind it takes an hr and quater to just get from Omokoroa Road to Wairoa Bridge. I suppose I could always go to work on my horse but then would I be able to use the bike lane lol.
No way!
Posted on 18-05-2023 10:03 | By fair game
re: Samwell... minimal people can work from home. Those in healthcare, teaching etc... Would you want your kids with a virtual teacher, or your sick relative with a virtual nurse?? And would you seriously bike on that stretch of roading? I work at the hospital and would end up there as a patient. Waka Kotahi just need to start working nights and weekends and sort this shambles out asap!
info check
Posted on 18-05-2023 17:55 | By polski
@fair game They are not working 2 nights per week, they are working every night, with 3 full road closures. Journey planner has all the info.
Bad planning & action
Posted on 22-05-2023 18:45 | By k Smith
Hi all, I grew up in Tauranga in the 60s, about 20,000 population, this road has been up graded ever since but not widened or made any bigger, we have nearly 150,000 population now, the welcome bay underpass was designed in 1964 due to be completed about 1969 but was completed 2018/19? We are way behind the progress of growth. The new highway Bethlehem to TePuna was supposed to be started when John Key was in power about 10 years ago.
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