Firm progress despite Covid and wet
Pandemic and stormy weather has hampered work
Steady progress continues to be made on the construction of the Te Ahu a Turanga: Manawatu¯ Tararua Highway. To date, more than 2.4 million cubic metres of earth has been moved across the entire project site. The project’s total amount of earthworks is about 6 million cubic metres, and the team is on track to move half of this by the end of 2022.
Considerable progress has also been made across the structures along the alignment. Of the minor structures, Bridge 10 is structurally complete, and Bridge 1 is nearing completion. Piling work is well under way on the Parahaki Bridge across the Manawatuu¯ River, and the main causeway on the Eco Bridge Viaduct is also nearly finished.
More than 250,000 native plants have been planted by landscaping teams so far, as part of the project’s ecological offset programme. A further 573,000 natives are expected to be planted this year. In total, almost 2 million native plants will be sowed throughout the wider region and along the alignment during the project.
From an employment perspective, Te Ahu a Turanga is contributing to the local economy, with between 250 and 350 people, including subcontractors, employed on the project at any one time. Currently, 80 per cent of these staff live locally and 35 per cent of these are of Ma¯ori or Pasfika descent.
Like all large construction projects in New Zealand, Te Ahu a Turanga has been affected by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. Since the emergence of the Omicron variant, there have been significant increases in absenteeism on the project, as workers have been required to isolate due to positive tests or being close household contacts to positive cases.
The impact extends beyond direct project employees, with subcontractors and workers employed in the extended supply chain also impacted.
Additionally, the Covid pandemic
Like all large construction projects in New Zealand, Te Ahu a Turanga has been affected by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic
has slowed the delivery of key construction materials due to the disruption of overseas supply chains, affecting the delivery of materials.
Unexpected wet weather conditions and storm events during the traditionally drier period between December 2021 and March 2022 have also hampered the project’s progress. The earthworks teams have made considerable progress when work has been possible, recording a record day of 24,000 cubic metres in one day, but the wet weather has inevitably caused delays. To mitigate these delays, winter works consents have been lodged with the regional council to allow us to continue with earthworks during the winter months.
In other project news, preliminary scientific analysis of the moa bones discovered by the Te Ahu a Turanga: Manawatu¯ Tararua Highway team in the Ruahine Range in March 2021 has found they may be between 180,000 and 345,000 years old. Further results are expected later this year.
The current completion date for the highway remains December 2024.
For more information about Te Ahu a Turanga, please head to https://www.nzta.govt.nz/projects/te-ahua-turanga/