Bateup work delayed by defects
Defects need correcting before a longrunning project to upgrade Bateup Rd in Richmond is complete.
‘‘We have a long list,’’ Tasman District Council programme delivery manager Russell McGuigan told councillors at a meeting of the engineering services committee on Thursday.
Work was also continuing on some private driveway exits, he said.
It is the fourth delay for the $3.6 million project, which was originally due to be completed in March.
Councillor Kit Maling asked when the road cones would be removed, suggesting the end of August. McGuigan replied: ‘‘I prefer to say September.’’
While it was open to two-way traffic, Bateup Rd was not finished, McGuigan said.
‘‘The cones are there as the job . . . hasn’t reached practical completion, and they do a good job of calming or slowing traffic, because it’s still a slow-speed zone.’’
Engineering services manager Richard Kirby told councillors he would be asking McGuigan and the team ‘‘to find out exactly how we ended up with such a large snag list with this particular contract’’.
In response to a question from Councillor David Ogilvie, McGuigan said the full cost of the project would be revealed when the job was complete.
‘‘Once the contract has reached practical completion and all claims have been received, that’s [when we’ll be in a] position to give you the final outturn cost.’’
Councillor Sue Brown asked a general question about how the council ensured vulnerable road user safety standards were adhered to during the construction phase of projects.
McGuigan said a traffic safety management plan had to be submitted by the contractor to be reviewed and approved by the council. An audit was made on site to ensure the plan was put in place.
Deputy mayor Tim King asked about council checks on the quality of work during projects.
‘‘We’ve had a couple of projects that have gone on in the last while,’’ he said. ‘‘I’m glad to hear our staff attend and assess and audit and take note of the health and safety and safety of vulnerable road users, but it appears we’re maybe not taking quite enough note of the quality of work that’s being undertaken at the time – because to get to the end of the project with a massive defects list is on the contractor, but it’s also on us.’’
While there had been a focus on the quality of the finish on the road surface, ‘‘there’s concerns over the quality of what’s under it’’, King said.
‘‘It just raises this question in my mind: if that’s crap, what’s everything else like? What’s underneath it? How well has that been done?
‘‘I think it’s a discussion we have to have and – again – it comes back to cost, tenders, what emphasis is put on price, and how much is in the traffic management plan,’’ King said. ‘‘We know that’s now a humungous part of these projects. I accept that needs to be done, but I am concerned that it’s starting to come at the cost of quality, and particularly the quality of stuff we can’t see.’’
McGuigan said there were checks and balances ‘‘to be sure that what gets buried has been built according to our technical specifications’’.
‘‘[There is] a large snag list with this particular contract.’’
Richard Kirby, Tasman District Council engineering services manager