National pledges $270 million to build Woodend Bypass
Monday, 31 July 2023
National has promised to build a bypass around Woodend in North Canterbury if it wins the election, but appears to have backtracked on an earlier promise to four-lane the highway between Christchurch and Ashburton.
Leader Christopher Luxon, who announced the party’s transport policy in Hamilton on Monday, said their measures, at a total cost of $24 billion, would slash congestion, unlock housing growth, boost productivity and lift incomes.
He promised they would invest heavily in roads of national significance and infrastructure to enable more housing in Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga and Wellington.
“Modern infrastructure like roads, public transport networks, energy, water services, hospitals and schools are fundamental to the quality of life of all of us. National has a strong legacy of delivering key infrastructure projects from ultra-fast broadband to the Waterview Tunnel, to the rebuilding of Christchurch,” he said.
Waimakariri MP Matt Doocey has long campaigned for the Woodend Bypass and said his party would deliver it in its first term of government.
“This is a town that has been increasingly split in two by the existing highway, and with the development growth particularly around Ravenswood and Pegasus, the road is only getting busier.
“I am thrilled we are nearing reality for the patient community of Woodend, as well as the large commuting contingent who drive in and out of Christchurch daily from around North Canterbury.”
Doocey said the road was one of the most dangerous in Canterbury, with nine fatal and 33 serious crashes between 2000 and 2018.
National promised $270 million to build the bypass and to extend the Christchurch Northern Corridor through to Pegasus, funded through the National Land Transport Fund and additional Crown capital.
“As evidenced by the huge turnout to my public rally in 2020, there is overwhelming local support for this bypass and I know it will be a game-changer for a vast number of people.”
AA Canterbury/West Coast chairperson John Skevington welcomed promised action on a road that “has one the highest daily traffic counts on SH1 in New Zealand”.
“With the continued growth in Woodend, Pegasus, Ravenswood, Rangiora and surrounding districts, this announcement will be welcomed by all commuters … especially after many years of endless consultation and inaction previously.”
However, National’s promise in 2020 - if it was elected that year - for a $1.5b four-lane motorway between Christchurch and Ashburton was now on a list of “projects for further investigation”.
The party’s latest transport plan said it would task Waka Kotahi NZTA and KiwiRail to work with local councils to begin or progress investigations into such projects.
The report did note there were two options for the Ashburton River bridge – replacing the existing bridge on State Highway 1 or building a second bridge on Chalmers Ave. It said National would “instruct NZTA to engage with the Ashburton community and council to determine the best option and ensure construction is under way within three years”.
The party also promised to build infrastructure to open up the potential for tens of thousands of new houses in Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga and Wellington, build a rapid transit network in Auckland, rebuild flood and cyclone-damaged regions like Northland, East Coast and Hawke’s Bay, and upgrade transport infrastructure in Ashburton, Queenstown, Otago and Southland.
National’s 13 new roads of national significance:
• Northland – Whangārei to Port Mardsen, Warkworth to Wellsford
• Auckland – Mill Road Stage 1, East-West Link, North West Alternative State Highway
• Bay of Plenty – SH29 Tauriko West, Tākitimu Northern Link Stage 2
• Waikato – Cambridge to Piarere, Southern Links
• Greater Wellington – Petone to Grenada Link Road and Cross Valley Link, Second Mt Victoria Tunnel
• Nelson – Hope Bypass
• Canterbury – Belfast to Pegasus motorway including the Woodend Bypass.