Work to spruce up stadium streets to take 18 months

Thursday, 22 August 2024

Motorists, businesses and pedestrians using streets surrounding Christchurch’s Te Kaha stadium are being warned to expect 18 months of disruption.

Uncertainty surrounds part of a plan to upgrade streets around Te Kaha stadium as motorists, businesses and pedestrians are warned to expect 18 months of disruption.

Contractors are working against the clock to replace century-old water pipes and make above-ground changes to the surrounding streets before the stadium opens in April 2026.

The work, which started earlier this month, has reduced parts of Barbadoes and Madras streets to one lane. Some nearby businesses have already reported a drop in revenue of up to 80%.

However, many understood the work was needed and believed it would be worth it in the end.

The pipe upgrades will make sure the toilets will flush and the water will run at the stadium, and the above ground work will help the area cope with an influx of pedestrians and traffic during large events.

The $34 million project was approved by Christchurch City Council last year but its future became uncertain when the Government said it could no longer guarantee a $13m subsidy.

Work to replace 100-year-old water pipes on Barbadoes (pictured) and Madra streets started earlier this month and has led to peak hour traffic delays of another four minutes.

The council has now split the project into three to ensure the critical work is finished by the time 30,000 people arrive at the stadium.

Stage one, the water pipe work, has already started and on Wednesday it agreed to push ahead with the second stage, which involved critical transport work including wider footpaths on streets immediately surrounding the stadium.

A decision on whether to progress stage three would be made later this year, when the council would know how much, if any, Government money the project would receive.

Stage three included above-ground work on Madras, Tuam and Barbadoes streets further away from stadium. It also involved completing work on Lichfield St including wider footpaths, paving and landscaping.

A decision on stage three would have to be made before Christmas to ensure it could be completed before the stadium opened.

Barber Land’s owner Will Whiteman says business is down 70 to 80% since the roadworks began.

City infrastructure general manager Brent Smith said carrying out transport upgrades at the same time as the water upgrades was the most efficient way to get the job done.

He said it would take around 18 months to complete the water and transport works.

Dan Lucas, who was working with the lead contractor Isaac Construction, told councillors three separate crews were working on the project.

Workers had been installing pipe for eight days and with 600m already laid, the project was about four days ahead of schedule, Lucas said.

The aim was to hit the project hard and “get out as fast as we can”.

However, it was not fast enough for Cr Aaron Keown, who questioned why work was not happening seven days a week, 24 hours a day.

Subway worker Ben Strickland says business has slowed since the roadworks began.

Lucas said staff were working an average of 52 hours a week and contract conditions meant they could not work after lunchtime on Saturdays.

A large number of residents lived in the area, and the council needed to be aware of the impact the project had on those residents, council head of transport Lynette Ellis said.

According to council figures, motorists using Madras and Barbadoes streets during peak hours (7-9am and 3-5pm) were delayed an additional four minutes since the works began.

There was no impact on Fitzgerald Ave, from Bealey to Moorhouse aves. Montreal St was taking one minute longer and Durham St was four minutes longer than the usual delay.

Barber Land owner Will Whiteman was worried about paying rent at the end of the month. He estimated business was down between 70 and 80%.

Te Kaha stadium in central Christchurch is due to open in April 2026.

The business, on the corner of Madras and Lichfield streets, heavily relied on its bright neon sign and barber pole to attract customers, but they were now surrounded on both sides by roadworks.

Whiteman said he planned to “soldier on” to see Te Kaha finished. He chose the location three years ago because of the stadium’s “potential” to liven up the edge of the central city.

On the other side of the stadium, Subway’s business had slowed about 15% since roadworks began. Reduced lanes on Barbadoes St had limited customer parking and accessibility, worker Ben Strickland said.

“I feel like people don't notice us really, with it just being so chaotic,” he said.

Fortunately the tradies were providing ”pretty good business” buying sandwiches for lunch.

“The odd time we get a supervisor who buys the whole group lunch… stuff like that keeps the business going.”

Finn Davidson of Auto City said he could put up with disruption for two years, if it meant getting the All Blacks back.

The automotive repair workshop on Barbadoes St had lost on street parking, footpaths, and reduced lanes of traffic which was confusing customers, the store owner Helen Parfitt said.

For Ara tertiary students, there was no “trying to sleep in” because of the loud construction backing onto their accommodation, first-year student Jack Andrews said.

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