Transmission Gully opened in March 2022, overdue and over budget. Photo: Mark Coote
The NZ Transport Agency / Waka Kotahi will rebuild parts of Transmission Gully over six months to resurface it and fix areas of the road damaged by water.
The $1.25 billion motorway north of Wellington opened to the public in March 2022 after years of delays.
While the road was made public for drivers, elements of the project are yet to be completed.
In December it was announced NZTA would take control of the project after a legal battle with the road's builders, which RNZ revealed cost the transport agency more than $600,000.
The roading agency's lower North Island/top of the South Island regional manager Mark Owen said substantial works were not completed by the builder before the project restructure.
"The cost of this work is still to be quantified."
Owen said around 20 kilometres of the road was scheduled to be resurfaced, which would also include drainage improvements after water damaged parts of the road.
"Water has affected the quality of the road surface and base course (the layer of ground beneath the road surface) in several areas and it is critical it is mitigated to prevent further pavement damage."
The work is expected to take place between October and March.
He said that the work would likely include resurfacing at the Kenepuru Interchange, the Waitangirua Interchange and two sites north of the State Highway 58 Interchange.
The road's southbound lanes would take up much of the roadworks, but some parts of the northbound lanes might be resurfarced too.
"Drivers can expect an increase in road maintenance on the motorway this summer."
Infrastructure New Zealand chief executive Nick Leggett said many motorists would be frustrated by the news.
"While it is sooner than many would have expected for maintenance of this scale to occur, it is vital that the work is undertaken to ensure the motorway continues to perform well for the region."
Leggett called for transparency around the cause of the maintenance and when it will be done.
"The public will want to understand why this work is required, what the impact will be on road users, and how costs are being managed. Clear communication is important to maintain confidence."
NZTA said worktimes would be finalised in the coming weeks which would be shared with the public.
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