Potholes top list of damage complaints
Potholes were the number one reason for compensation complaints made by Taranaki motorists, figures obtained under the Official Information Act show.
For the year to October 7, there were 119 requests from Taranaki drivers to Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency seeking compensation for damage caused to their vehicles by the region’s highways.
That’s more than the number of complaints from the drivers of Auckland, Wellington and the entire South Island combined.
Of the 119, 70 were related to potholes.
Potholes have been a recurring problem along SH3 through winter, with some motorists paying thousands to repair damaged rims and tyres.
The holes are particularly bad around Tariki, which has long been a problem area for them.
In July, plans to fix potholes in the area fell through due to a traffic management plan oversight.
The repairs then took place on August 9, but heavy rain quickly undid the patches.
In addition to potholes, there were 37 complaints related to loose chip and stones from roadworks, and nine cases of tar or chips sticking to vehicles.
There was also one case each of road edge break, crashing into a barrier caused by water on the road, and one case of a crash with a large rock from rockfall.
Waka Kotahi had previously said that there were 127 requests for compensation for damage to vehicles in Taranaki during the period.
But in its OIA response, the agency amended the number to 119, as eight of the 127 requests had been related to either damage to property rather than vehicles, had been duplicate requests from the same person, or were a general complaint.
The Waka Kotahi website says it will only provide compensation if it has not taken reasonable care to maintain the state highway network in good condition.
In response to a previous article on compensation complaints, Waka Kotahi regional manager of maintenance and operations Jaclyn Hankin said there were long sections of SH3 and 3A that were due for rehabilitation or reseals over the next four to five years due to their age.
The Covid-19 lockdown, which meant much of the work scheduled for early 2020 was unable to be completed, has also affected road conditions.
‘‘While our crews have been pushing hard to catch up, like many other businesses and organisations across the country, and around the world, we continue to feel the impacts of Covid through our supply chain, including material, machinery and personnel shortages,’’ Hankin said.