Overnight works for Waioeka Bridge clean-up

The New Zealand Transport Agency advises cleaning and painting of Waioeka Bridge in Ōpōtiki will get underway from Monday 14 October, ahead of the busy summer holiday season.

Rob Campbell, Bay of Plenty System Manager says people can expect to see scaffolding being established on the Northern side of the bridge from Monday morning, followed by spraying of the balustrades and bridge deck in the evening to loosen dirt, moss and debris.

"Following the spraying, the bridge balustrades will be water blasted and then painted. Special matting and sacking materials will be used to contain dirt and debris to prevent it from entering the surrounding waterways.

"Work will be carried out overnight, 7 days a week, between 6pm and 6am to minimise the impact on motorists. During this time the bridge will be reduced to a single lane with stop/go traffic management in place. Both lanes will be open during the day."

The bridge will be closed to over-dimension vehicles between 6pm and 6am. Over-dimension vehicles will need to restrict their travel on this route to outside these hours or consider an alternative route.

The work is weather dependant and is expected to take up to 22 days to complete.

Mr Campbell says while traffic management is in place, contractors will also complete temporary repairs to the road surface across the bridge, ahead of scheduled resealing in 2021/2022.

Motorists can expect minor delays.

"The Transport Agency thanks motorists for their patience."