Transmission Gully opening: Sixth time's a charm?

Thursday, 17 March 2022

Five aerial photos taken by pilot Leo Cooney from a small plane above Pauatahanui/Haywards Junction, looking north up Transmission Gully to the Wainui Saddle, show how the highway cut its path through the landscape.

When will Transmission Gully actually open?

That is the question on everyone’s lips after Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency on Thursday formally directed the lead contractor, Wellington Gateway Partnership (WGP), to open the road within two weeks.

The agency did not release a specific date and time when motorists will be able to drive onto the long-awaited $1.25 billion expressway, which runs between Linden and Mackays Crossing. But Brett Gliddon, Waka Kotahi’s general manager of transport services, said “nothing substantial” could prevent the road from opening by the end of March.

“All of the critical safety assurance tests have now been completed to a standard that gives us confidence the road will be a safe, reliable route,” he said on Thursday.

Transmission Gully is finally expected to open by the end of March after months of delay.

* Progress plods along on Transmission Gully, no new opening date announced

* Calls for inquiry into Transmission Gully delay 'fiasco'

To get the road opened, the transport agency will defer a number of quality assurance tests required under the contract with the road builders, CPB HEB, because it believes the 27-kilometre road is now safe for public use.

It has said safety would not be compromised by carrying out the tests after the road is opened.

Waka Kotahi clearly thinks their ultimatum is achievable, but some locals and dignitaries remain sceptical, saying they’ve heard it all before.

Five previous deadlines for opening have been missed. The project is now 91 days past its fifth deadline.

The road is months late, and half a billion dollars over budget.

Kāpiti Coast Chamber of Commerce co-chairwoman Heather Hutchings also said she wasn’t holding her breath, but it would be wonderful if in a fortnight’s time, the motorway was in use.

“The travel time will be far less for commuters and business, and it opens up the entire region,” she said.

The motorway is expected to save motorists 11 minutes on their journey.

Several quality assurance test needs to be carried out on Transmission Gully. Some of those tests will be deferred and completed after the road is opened.

“Kāpiti could become a hub for Wellington-based businesses wanting to expand, or for ones from Horowhenua wanting to break into the Wellington market,” Hutchings said.

Graham Strang, a driver for Kāpiti Removals and Storage, said he was also dubious of the latest deadline given the project’s track history, but the road would be great once finished. “It’ll be quicker heading north and south, and it’ll take a lot of traffic off what will become secondary roads.”

The Kāpiti Coast and Porirua mayors, K Gurunathan and Anita Baker, were both allowing themselves to be cautiously optimistic.

“This isn’t the first time we’ve got excited about the prospect of the road opening, and it feels a bit like déjà vu, but I am confident this is the real deal and something we can be genuinely excited about,” Gurunathan said. Baker added: “I’ve now got some dates in my diary for blessings, so it is set in stone.”

The years of delays and cost blow-outs would soon be forgotten, said Ia Ara Aotearoa Transporting New Zealand chief executive Nick Leggett. “Most people will forget the saga around the three-year delay and half a billion dollar budget blow-out” once the road opened.

The fact Waka Kotahi had given a firm deadline gave him “some confidence” it would be met. “But I wouldn’t stake my house on it,” Leggett said.

Some of the consenting tests that had delayed the opening of the expressway, including environmental measures, would be completed after the road is open.

Pavement and road surface tests are also outstanding but will be completed before Transmission Gully opens, as will a final overall safety check.

A final pre-opening safety inspection will need to be completed before the road can open, as well as other key safety requirements.

The outstanding tasks do not compromise public safety, the agency said.

Ngāti Toa chief executive Helmut Modlik said the iwi had been heavily involved in the design and consent processes. “There can be no compromise in the slightest degree that those risks are covered off, and my expectation is that those will be covered off,” he said.

Gliddon said the agency had not been prepared to compromise on the road’s safety, and complex negotiations continued with the parties contracted to build, manage and maintain the road.

“However, all of the critical safety assurance tests have now been completed to a standard that gives us confidence the road will be a safe, reliable route for motorists between Wellington and the rest of the North Island,” he said.

Gliddon said the responsibility now rested with WGP to have the road open as soon as possible.

The road builders will continue to pay fines each day until the road is opened, after missing their latest deadline – in December – for completion.