The too-narrow, flood-prone Waihenga Bridge on State Highway 53 – the key access to Martinborough – was designated for urgent replacement nearly two decades ago, but in 2024 no notified project planning or work has even begun.
AA (Automobile Association) Wairarapa tried to revive the “urgent” issue in 2017.
“The Waihenga Bridge … between Martinborough and Featherston is so narrow that two trucks cannot pass,” it said in its 2017 newsletter.
“We believe safety and efficiency gains from widening the bridge outweigh the cost. We don’t think it is acceptable to have a 100km/h state highway … where large vehicles find it impossible to cross the bridge without crossing the centreline.”
AA Wairarapa has this month restated its seven-year-old case that the old, narrow, state highway bridge is not fit for purpose and needs urgent replacement.
AA Wairarapa chairman Craig Bowyer has told the Greater Wellington Regional Council the bridge at the entrance to Martinborough is “very narrow and particularly difficult for large trucks when encountering vehicles coming from the opposite direction. Often they are required to wait until the bridge is clear prior to crossing.”
“The bridge is also prone to closure due to flooding, which happens several times each year, forcing extensive detours to be put in place,” while “the pileup of logs during flooding also compromises the integrity of the bridge,” Bowyer said in a submission to the council’s Regional Land Transport Plan (RLTP).
The RLTP identifies regional transport priorities, which are submitted to Waka Kotahi/New Zealand Transport Agency to be considered for funding as part of the National Land Transport Programme.
“As this is a state highway, we believe the bridge should be replaced and should be included as an action point in this RLTP,” Bowyer told the regional grouping.
This access route to the region’s key tourism, visitor and farming area has apparently had no effect on NZTA planning, despite the economic and social impacts of the flood-prone bridge.
The priority allocated to Waihenga Bridge action by the regional council’s transport planning update is expected before year end.
