As well as school holidays, daylight saving signals the start of the summer roadworks programme on Southland state highways. 

Highways South, on behalf of Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency, will be delivering road reconstruction and resurfacing projects from October until mid-April as daylight hours increase, and the warmer temperatures and dry air help new seals stick as intended to the road surface. 

Major construction and resurfacing work is not advisable in Southland between May and October due to the cooler temperatures.

More than 90 single lane kilometres of state highway in Southland will be resurfaced and another 10 lane kilometres fully reconstructed before May 2023, says Justin Reid, Maintenance Contract Manager for Waka Kotahi in Southland.

“Some of these reconstruction projects will be significantly disruptive to road users due to the length of construction and the traffic management required to keep crew and road users safe,” says Mr Reid.

Reconstruction projects

These reconstruction projects, all weather dependent, include:

• SH6 Josephville Hill, early to late October
• SH1 Dacre, early October until mid November
• SH6 Lowther, mid October until late November
• SH94, Croydon, mid October until early December
• SH98, Lorneville, early November until mid December.

Resurfacing projects

Three of the planned asphalt resurfacing projects early in 2023 will also cause disruption to road users due to their location and will involve significant traffic management, including partial road closures:

• SH6/North Road, Invercargill on the southern approach to Lorneville roundabout
• SH6/98/99 Lorneville roundabout, Invercargill
• SH6 Winton township.

“Some of the other resurfacing work will be done overnight to minimise delays for customers on roads with high traffic volumes. We will stop work before major holiday travel periods like Christmas and New Year to minimise disruption to people’s journeys,” says Mr Reid.

Highways South acknowledges that this work will cause delays for road users and thanks everyone for their patience and care around crews. 

How to get more details, keep up-to-date

If there are concerns or questions around these works, road users can call 03 211 1561 to speak with the Highways South team, or sign up for email updates regarding interruptions and possible delays on Southland highways via this Facebook page: www.facebook.com/HighwaysSouthNZ