Road sealing priorities decided
15 September 2015Three of Waipa's busiest rural roads will be sealed over the coming year as Waipa District Council begins rolling out its 10-Year Plan.
Within the coming 12 months Jary Road, Smart Road and Wood Road will go from gravel to a sealed surface, along with part of Wallace Road.
The following year, a further 1.7km of Wallace Road will be sealed plus all of Fletcher Road, Gudex Road and Strong Road. Year three will see more work done on Wallace Road plus the complete sealing of Umutawa Road.
Sainsbury Road and Martelletti Roads will be next on the priority list and may proceed if there are savings made on the other sites. If budget allows, the Gudex Road carpark and part of Turkington Road outside the blueberry farm may also be sealed within the next three years.
Elected councillors finalised the priority roads today as part of the council's commitment to spending $500,000 per year for the next 10 years to seal some of the unsealed roads in the Waipa district. Originally no money had been set aside for road seal extensions. Councillors changed their minds following public submissions, adding a further $5 million to the 10-Year budget.
Group manager service delivery Barry Begin said priorities for determining which roads were sealed first were based on traffic volume, dust exposure, the impact on earnings and the ongoing cost of maintenance.
Factors like community activity, heavy vehicle usage, growth potential and road hierarchy were also taken into account, he said.
Work will begin on Jary, Smart and Woods Road from November this year.
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All media enquiries, contact Jeanette Tyrrell (on behalf of council) 027 507 7599