Road a ‘rutted, bumpy mess’: Community near Martinborough isolated

Thursday, 16 July 2026

A repair truck on Whakatomotomo Rd in South Wairarapa where a series of slips damaged the road, brought down a huge tree and closed the road for days.

A 25-minute drive south of Martinborough, a community has been cut off for more than a week after parts of their road collapsed in recent severe weather.

About 20 people on Whakatomotomo Rd near Pirinoa in South Wairarapa lost use of their road in early July when sections dropped down the hillside below, and slips came down from above.

Much of the road is on a narrow ledge on the side of a hill high above the Tūranganui River valley.

South Wairarapa councillor Aidan Ellims, chair of the council’s infrastructure committee, acknowledged the road had been “severely impacted” by the weather and was “at risk of landslide and roading dropouts”.

He said a temporary access solution would be put in place while the council worked on a longer-term fix.

“It is a priority for South Wairarapa District Council to reinstate the road,” he said.

Carmen Harrison had lived there for more than 35 years, and was in contact with other residents, who she described as “incredibly frustrated” about the situation, as well as concerned for their safety.

“The community wants a permanent solution,” she said.

The road closure sign at Whakatomotomo Rd in South Wairarapa at midday on Wednesday. It had been closed for more than a week after being badly damaged by a slip.

Harrison said the road had been degrading for some time, but estimated the current severe damage happened around July 6.

Many of the residents were farmers. The closure meant they couldn’t move cows to fresh pastures as the stock truck couldn’t get through. One had between 300 and 400 calves who needed milk daily.

Others were wondering if they would need to relocate for work when heavy rain was forecast. Another risked losing valuable long-standing staff.

Without a permanent fix, people also faced difficulty in getting hay for animals, help for medical events, moving heavy equipment in and out, and receiving mail.

“It’s been going on for over two weeks,” Harrison said.

“These last three floods have put pressure on the road and it’s just got worse and worse.

“The road on the side is all just crumbling away.

“I’ve been stuck in there for a week today.”

Harrison’s flatmate had been walking “a reasonable distance through mud” across the damaged road daily to get out to work.

People had been improvising by walking, and using motorbikes or side-by-sides, which are small farm utility vehicles.

“This road hasn’t had any proper work on it for over 20 years,” she said.

Another resident, who asked to remain anonymous, described the road on Wednesday as a “rutted, bumpy mess”.

“The road is continuously slumping over and over by as much as 20 to 30cm in multiple places at a time, and you would be driving over that.

“I’d suggest that’s part of the reason they’ve closed it because they didn’t know if the hill was going to completely fall into the river.”

One of a number of large slips which came down on Whakatomotomo Rd in South Wairarapa in recent flooding.

They needed to get out for work, but could not get their car out.

“I’m in a massive predicament. I’ve been told I can’t leave, but I have to leave.”

The damage started in the mid-February storm when the Whakatomotomo valley received 400mm of rain, they said.

“The river doubled in size and width for the majority of the river and there was a lot of erosion. Part of that erosion is where the road is now subsiding.”

The river was running near the base of the cliffs, scouring the area almost directly underneath where the road ran.

“The river used to be about 20 metres away from the hill where our road is, and now it’s right up against it – and it hits the hill. That’s where the slumping issues have come from.

“There are also slip issues above the road, falling down on the road.”

Ellims said while the council was working “at pace” with technical engineers on the most appropriate long-term fix, there would be a temporary solution.

“The temporary access will allow residents-only to access the road via a single lane with a speed restriction of 30kph, with a priority give way (like a one-lane bridge),” he said.

“There will be a weight limit to cars and utes only.”

The council would be monitoring the road, which would close during heavy rain or an increased risk of slope movement.

Ellims said the council would provide regular updates, and appreciated the community’s patience and co-operation.