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Questions came thick and fast for Waka Kotahi staff at two recent O Mahurangi (Penlink) information sessions held in Whangaparāoa.
Work on building the road and bridge from Whangaparāoa to Redvale is set to begin later this year, and with the design now complete, two information days were held to inform the public and get feedback.
Around 170 people attended the sessions, held on August 10 and 13 at The Archer, near where the new road will intersect with Whangaparāoa Road.
A key point of interest was that very intersection, including how traffic flow may be impacted by the signalised intersection between Whangaparāoa Rd and O Mahurangi (Penlink).
Others, such as Paula Luijken of Bike Whangaparāoa, were keen to find out more about bike connections so she can cycle as quickly and safely as possible to the start of the new road.
Other topics raised with Waka Kotahi staff included the future of Archer’s Block bush, now owned by the Crown, tolling, construction areas and impacts, potential flooding issues, what vegetation will be cut down, what the work hours will be (whether it will take place at night), and how the name O Mahurangi was gifted.
Some also asked whether the project is actually happening.
Waka Kotahi is compiling a list of all of the questions and answers from both sessions and these will be put into an FAQs document which will be published on its Penlink project webpage.
More detail about the timeline for the work itself also emerged following Hibiscus Matters’ enquiries at the sessions. There is expected to be a sod turning at the SH1 end of the road in December, but it may be next January before what Waka Kotahi call “enabling works” will begin. This is the process of establishing a construction site before any heavy machinery moves in – such things as clearing ground, establishing access tracks and temporary erosion and sediment controls, early earthworks, office set up and starting construction of a temporary access platform within the Weiti River to enable the bridge construction.
The build will begin from the SH1 end, then move into Stillwater, the bridge over the Weiti River and the Whangaparāoa Peninsula side last.
Bulk earthworks are not expected to commence until October 2023 and completion is still estimated to be in December 2026.
Government is yet to make a decision on whether or not the road will be tolled. Waka Kotahi was due to provide detailed information and analysis of the 3337 submissions on its website in June, but this has not yet been made public.
