‘Productivity’ loss a concern as Halswell increasingly surrounded by road works

Thursday, 19 February 2026

Key roads in and out of Christchurch’s fastest growing suburb will be disrupted by public works in the coming months, in what a city councillor is calling a massive threat to productivity.

One affected business owner says customers have already bid her farewell for two months.

How will the roadworks affect you or your business? Contact sinead.gill@press.co.nz

Andrei Moore, city councillor for Halswell, wants the council to seriously consider paying contractors extra to work into the night to reduce delays for the several thousand people commuting to and from his ward.

The multiple road, water network and power supply upgrades were necessary to keep up with the population boom, but Moore was convinced the council could ease the growing pains.

“We’re talking every road in and out of Halswell,” he said.

The latest was the closure of Hayton Rd off Wigram Rd this week, an intersection where traffic lights are being installed over the next 10 weeks. A temporary stop/go or signalised system will be used to maintain two-way traffic.

Coffee Cube owner-operator Yan Shi was afraid of a dramatic drop in customers to her Avenger Cres cafe.

Many were tradies who used Hayton Rd to get to her when they needed a quick food stop on their way to or from jobs via Wigram Rd.

“They came in this morning and said they won’t be here for the next couple of months,” an emotional Shi said on Monday.

“Two months is too long [for installing] traffic lights. Roadworks [are] happening in our area every year … it’s too much.”

Currently, there is only one-way traffic through a section of Sparks Rd. Come March, yet another section of Halswell Junction Rd will be worked on, followed by a more significant project on Lincoln Rd in April, which is not due to finish until early 2027.

“When Wigram Rd was closed last year for works it led to sort of hour long delays and it was a really unsafe situation,” Moore said

The Wigram/Hayton Rd project, where new traffic lights will also connect to Ngā Puna Wai Sports Hub, has a budget of about $2.5 million and will take 10 weeks.

Jacob Bradbury, council head of transport planning and delivery, said contractors had been asked what it would take for them to work during the night, but finishing the job quicker would not necessarily be worth the cost.

Likewise, a major wastewater, water and road infrastructure upgrade on Lincoln Rd between Wrights and Curletts roads, beginning April and ending early 2027, may involve some night works, Bradbury said, but the council was weighing those costs up as part of the ongoing tender process.

The total project had a budget of about $14.7m, and would include roads widening, new fibre connections, and new peak-time bus lanes in both directions.

A third project on Halswell Junction Rd, from Main South Rd to Springs Rd - beginning March 16 - will see six weeks of road repairs and resurfacing, funded by the NZ Transport Agency. Night works were already planned for this project.

Bradbury said night works were considered only where there was a clear operational need, like final surfacing.

Working at night not only cost more, but increased the health and safety risks for both workers and road users, as visibility was reduced. It could also disturb nearby residents, he said.

Not all traffic-disrupting works in Halswell involved the council. Some work could be associated with housing developments, and the Sparks Rd work was for lines company Orion’s new underground power cable.

Moore did not accept the reasons against night works in Halswell when other road projects, like around the new stadium at Te Kaha, were worked on overnight.

“The loss in productivity for over a million vehicle movements over three months is massive.”

He wanted councillors to be briefed on what the extra costs were and be allowed to give input.