Residents find upside toweeks more of navigating roadworks
$2.1m upgrade aims to accommodate growth in Western Heights
Clayton Rd residents are looking forward to their new- look street once months of roadworks are finished, but they’ve got a bit longer to wait yet.
The $2.1 million upgrade will help accommodate development in the Western Heights area, will better manage stormwater during floods and will make the area safer for all road users.
There will also be a shared pathway built connecting to Pukehangi Rd.
Rotorua Lakes Council said on its website the stormwater infrastructure improvements would increase the capacity of the roadside drains and capture stormwater runoff that flowed from the slopes of Mt Ngongotaha¯.
The council said the added stormwater capacity would allow for increasing development in the area and make the area better prepared for flooding.
Construction involves converting the estimated 375m of open drains on Clayton Rd to underground pipes, which will create space to build a shared path on the surface.
This will connect with the shared path at Pukehangi Rd and help to provide a safer and more direct route for local school students and people walking, running and cycling.
The major works were set to start in March but had to be paused when the country plunged into alert level restrictions as a result of Covid-19.
Infrastructure group manager Stavros Michael said it was originally hoped the stormwater upgrades would be finished by the end of October but it was now expected to be finished next week.
Construction of the shared path would begin after the holiday period, Michael said.
The delay had been caused by “unfavourable ground conditions” needing careful handling followed by a period of heavy rain and adjustments to the timing of the work to align with school holidays.
But Clayton Rd residents spoken to by the Rotorua Daily Post said they didn’t mind the roadworks and had got used to them by now, despite having to wait in stop/go queues.
There was even excitement about the roadworks for 5-yearold Eli Te Huia who got to see diggers and trucks right outside his house.
For his father, Jeremy Te Huia, mother, Zara Morrison, and 3-year-old sister, Awatea, the roadworks haven’t been hard to cope with.
“They seem to be moving pretty quickly. It’s more the hoons at night that are more annoying,” Jeremy Te Huia said.
Darryl Rogers, who also lives on Clayton Rd, said they were a retired couple who didn’t go out much so the roadworks didn’t bother them.
“It will be good when it’s done,” he said.