Raumati Straights Upgrade
A smoother connection is on its way.
The Raumati Straights Upgrade involves roadworks on 2km of State Highway 1 between Paekakariki and Paraparaumu. This upgrade is important because the current road provides a very uneven and bumpy ride and raises ongoing maintenance and safety issues.
The upgrade will fix and correct the shape and camber of the road, widen the road shoulders, add wire median barriers in the centre and northbound, and a new guard rail southbound to improve road safety and your experience as a road user.
Improving this section of State Highway 1 is critical because it needs to connect seamlessly between the new Mackays to Peka Peka (M2PP) Expressway and Transmission Gully that sit either side of it.
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Why so long?
Our number one priority is keeping you, your passengers and our workers safe.
We’re all working and commuting on a State Highway that has over 25,000 vehicles moving through per day. We’re squeezed in between a live railway and a conservation area (Queen Elizabeth Park) and we’ve got no alternative route. So we’ve got to work and travel together.
Did you know that Raumati Straights is built on top of peat? Thick, water-logged soil that used to be swamp or wetlands. The peat is deepest on the left-hand side of the northbound lane where you can feel dips and rolls in your ride. That’s caused by the spongy soil beneath the road and to fix this up we have to load it with rock and hard fill and then let it settle for at least two months.
So we’re not dealing with stable ground or working conditions on this job. To manage all these issues we’ve put a huge amount of expertise and time into planning and staging our work to get the best outcome possible.
What’s happening where, when and why?
Works on the Raumati StraightsWe worked closely with stakeholders and the Poplar Avenue tie-in continuecommunity groups, as well as AA and emergency services to ensure we providedevelop our plan for Raumati Straights. We looked at all sorts of options, some of which involved more than one lane closure at a smooth connection totime and for much longer periods. We settled on the Expressway oncecurrent work plan because it is ready to open. The teams working in this area are also working acrosswas agreed that it would cause the whole Expressway alignment and have hadleast amount of disruption, while still achieving a good result for all road users. That plan has eight stages that allow us to movework safely, efficiently and shift priorities to work with the very wet weather the past five months have delivered.keep traffic moving as much as possible. The southbound lanes past the tie-in pointmajority of these stages are complete.
Where we have completed the works on the southbound lanes the speed limit will return to 100km/h speed limit before Christmas. There is still tie-in work to be down around Poplar Avenue so this will remain at 70km/h until the Expressway opens.
There’s still some work to be completed and back to 100km/h, andon the northbound lanes are being completed atlanes, and the moment. The completionfinal road surface isn’t down yet, so this side of these worksthe road will bestay at 70km/h until this work is complete in line with the completion of Expressway works.
There will be a temporary speed limit of 50 km/h northboundNew Year. The surface you’re driving on isn’t suitable for a few days in the coming weeks to keep our workers and all road users safe while we finalise these works.100km/h.
Essential information for road users
Be aware that as speed reduces, the distance between vehicles reduces. Sudden braking creates a domino effect of stop-starting and queuing and causes delays. You can help by:
- following the speed signs
- focusing on the road
- minimising lane changing
- merging like a zip.
Plan your trip. We know it’s not easy for everyone to adjust their travel plans on short notice, but if it’s possible, plan your trip ahead of time. If you have to travel at peak times, allow more time to get to your destination safely and on time.
Park & Ride. Park for free at Waikanae and Paraparaumu and connect with regular bus and train services to the City and Wellington region.
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