Further momentum on Northern Corridor RoNS

  • Gerry Brownlee
Transport

Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee has welcomed another milestone for the Wellington Northern Corridor Road of National Significance, as momentum builds towards creating a modern, safe and efficient transport lifeline north of the capital.

“The NZ Transport Agency’s announcement that it has awarded the contract for detailed design of the Peka Peka to Otaki section of the Kapiti expressway to Opus Consultants is another positive step for this important roading project, which is on track for a construction start in 2016,” Mr Brownlee says.

“Wellington has been waiting decades for State Highway 1 to receive the upgrade it so desperately needs, and the last six months has seen serious work get underway.

“So far this year hundreds of jobs have been created on the Kapiti Expressway and nearly a million cubic metres of earth has been moved.

“We’ve locked in Transmission Gully to begin this year as a Public Private Partnership.

“We’re on the verge of adding another northbound lane to the urban motorway between Ngauranga Gorge and the Aotea Quay, and now detailed design is about to kick off for Peka Peka to Otaki,” Mr Brownlee says.

Today Mr Brownlee joined Otaki MP Nathan Guy and personnel from the M2PP Alliance to inspect construction progress at the Waikanae River, where preparations are underway for a new bridge as part of the MacKays to Peka Peka Expressway.

“I’m delighted to see so much progress since I turned the first sod on this project in December last year, and to note that around half the suppliers and subcontractors for the M2PP Alliance are from the Kapiti and Horowhenua regions,” Mr Brownlee says.

For more information on the Wellington Northern Corridor Road of National Significance visit www.nzta.govt.nz/network/projects/wellington-northern-corridor/