Night and day-time closures are planned for State Highway 60 Tākaka Hill next month, as the state highway summer maintenance season continues in the top of the South Island.

Rob Service, System Manager, Top of the South, says the work is deliberately timed for November to ensure the route is clear for all drivers over the summer holidays.

“Golden Bay is a popular holiday spot and summer sees busy roads. So, we want to get this work done before the summer holiday season.”

Between Sunday, 3 November, and Sunday, 24 November, the road will be closed every Sunday to Thursday between 8 pm and 5:30 am with a short opening around 1 am for queued traffic.

Then from Monday, 25 November, until Friday, 29 November the highway will be closed between 9 am and 3 pm. During this time, the road will be reopened every 90 minutes to let traffic through.

Mr Service says it’ s a good idea to have water and snacks in your vehicle if you’re travelling over the hill during this time.

Because of the road’s narrowness and to keep contractors safe, the road must be closed while the work is done. It will also allow the maintenance to be completed much faster.

Mr Service says there is a lot of work to be done.

“Contractors will spend the first two weeks of night-time closures asphalting parts of the road surface on both sides of the hill, carrying out other maintenance work, such as clearing water channels, fixing slips and guard rails, and attending to general maintenance.”

“Some of this work, such as asphalting, must be done during the day when conditions are warm and dry to ensure it’s effective. This is why some daytime road closures are needed,” Mr Service says.

He acknowledges travel over the Tākaka Hill is vital for residents and local businesses, and their needs are important. 

“This is why there will be day-time access on the route. We are timing the day closures to avoid the school bus run and peak commuting times. We realise the work is disruptive, but we are working our hardest to meet community needs and ensure the highway is kept resilient and reliable.”

“Regular road maintenance like this is essential in preventing more disruptive ones later on.” 

Contractors will make the most of the closure to speed up repair work at the underslip site on the Riwaka side of the hill.

“We know this route is critical to the residents and businesses in Golden Bay and we aim is to have this section of road repaired and reopened to two lanes before Christmas,” Mr Service says. 

Once contractors have completed asphalting work on Tākaka Hill they will move onto SH60 Commercial Street in Takāka. More information on this work will be shared soon.