SCIRT traffic update Friday 15 November, 2012

• Major traffic update Somerfield/ Sparks Road
• Madras Street, central city, traffic closure for one month
• Avondale bridge long-term traffic closure New Year, open day Saturday 24 November
• Wairakei Road - Strowan/ Bryndwr/ Papanui - expect delays
• South Brighton’s bridge: holiday period to two-way traffic but no change otherwise

Major traffic update Somerfield/ Sparks Road: Wednesday, 21 November, 2012 to end of August 2013

The first stage of this SCIRT City Care work in Somerfield will begin Wednesday next week and run until mid December.

It includes a one-way system through the Sparks Road/Lyttelton Street roundabout.
• Traffic on Sparks Road, between Waimokihi Place and Lyttelton Street, and Frankleigh Street (from number 20) will be one-way, west-bound only.
• Drivers coming towards the city, east-bound, will be detoured at various intersections along the route.
• Lyttelton Street between Sparks Road and Glue Place will be closed to all through traffic although resident access will be maintained. Road users should follow the traffic management signage.
• Lyttelton Street between Sparks Road and Mountfort Street will be one-way south only.
• Some bus-stops will be relocated and signposted but please allow extra time to find your stop. Visit metroinfo.co.nz or phone 366 8855 for information.
This City Care work package will include wastewater, stormwater and roading repairs. Read the works notice for details and map. http://strongerchristchurch.govt.nz/work/activity/2249

Madras Street, central city, traffic closure for one month from Monday 19 November

A road closure on Madras St, which is one-way north, between Tuam and Lichfield, will be in place from Monday 19 November for a month. This block runs past the CBD bar and NG.

SCIRT delivery team Fletcher Construction is repairing the brick barrel stormwater pipe. Detours are in place and can be viewed on the works notice. http://strongerchristchurch.govt.nz/work/activity/2251

Avondale bridge long-term traffic closure New Year, open day Saturday 24 November

SCIRT delivery team McConnell Dowell has organised an open day at the Avondale bridge on Saturday, 24 November. The bridge will be closed to road traffic from 14 January for eight months.

The bridge is one of nine road bridges across the Avon River/ Otakaro in the east of Christchurch, which are being repaired or rebuilt as a result of earthquake damage. The bridges start at Fitzgerald Avenue and follow the Avon to the Avon-Heathcote Estuary/ Ihutai at Bridge Street, South Brighton.

• The open day is for people to find out more about the work to the bridge and traffic management. It will run from 10 am to 2 pm, Saturday, 24 November. If it is wet, it will move to All Saints Church, 305 New Brighton Road.
• Local residents are getting information in their letterboxes.
Currently, a temporary shingle path is being built out into the river to allow heavy machinery access. The bridge will stay open to traffic while this work is going on. At times there will be stop/go traffic management when a crane is needed to lower material over the side, which will take up one lane.

During the works, pedestrians, people with buggies, mobility scooter drivers, cyclists will be able to cross using a temporary pedestrian bridge which will join the existing bridge and bank.

Traffic coming into Avondale via New Brighton Road will be detoured to the next bridge east, Anzac Drive, then onto Wainoni Road and back into Avondale.

Leading into Christmas this year, the bridge caps or centre piles will be repaired.

Both abutment ends of the bridge will be replaced, starting on the southern/Avondale side from the New Year. The bridge will be temporarily supported while the existing abutment is demolished.

The work involves significant relocation of existing services, including high voltage power and fibre-optic cables.

Read the earlier web story on Avondale bridge investigations. http://strongerchristchurch.govt.nz/article/investigations-under-avondale-bridge-needed-for-bridge-repair-design

Wairakei Road - Strowan/ Bryndwr/ Papanui - expect delays
SCIRT delivery team Fletcher Construction will be re-lining wastewater pipes along Wairakei Road, using a spiral plastic or cured-in-place fibreglass insert, starting Wednesday 21 November.

During the relining of lateral pipes (to property boundaries) from 21 November:
• A road shoulder closure will be in place as work progresses along Wairakei Rd. Sections of the footpath will be closed, but pedestrians will have access.

During the main pipe spiral-lining work from 26 November:
• Two-way traffic will be maintained but the road will be narrowed.
• The work will be in the centre of the road so road users will not be able to cross over the middle.
• Turning restrictions will be in place at the Chislehurst Place, Idris, Ilam, Blighs, and Aorangi Road intersections with Wairakei Road.
• A 30kph safety speed restriction will be in place, so road users should expect delays.

A traffic island will be removed at night, starting 20 November over three days.
Two-way traffic will be maintained with a stop-go system in place.

Further details on the SCIRT website next week. http://strongerchristchurch.govt.nz/work/activity

South Brighton’s bridge: holiday period to two-way traffic but no change otherwise
Two-way traffic will be allowed on South Brighton’s Bridge Street bridge during the Christmas period Friday, 21 December 2012 through to Tuesday, 15 January 2013. The two-way system will be able to occur safely through this period as the work site will be fully closed down, and most of the plant and machinery will be removed from the bridge-deck.

However, the review of the decision to restrict the bridge to one-way, west-only traffic seven days a week by SCIRT and Fulton Hogan has reconfirmed the original traffic management. This means there will be no change to the one-way, west only access (outside the holiday shut-down period outlined above) while the bridge is being reconstructed at its abutments. For details read the story on the SCIRT website. http://strongerchristchurch.govt.nz/article/south-brighton-bridge-one-lane-stays-closed-for-the-next-year

Media: if you need to quote any of this, please quote it back to Duncan Gibb, SCIRT General Manager.

ENDS

© Scoop Media

Gordon Campbell: On Failures Of Care For Those With Mental Disabilities

Hard to imagine a more disturbing insight into the treatment of the vulnerable than the Health Ministry report on Te Roopu Taurima o Manukau. The Ministry has found that the country’s only kaupapa Maori intellectual disability residential care provider has been “seriously dysfunctional.”

The ministry says the business has failed to recruit and retain quality staff – and says the kaimahi (caregivers) that have been employed are seriously unsuitable for the job, lacking basic knowledge. But Te Roopu Taurima o Manukau doesn’t get all the blame. The report says there’s a significant gap under disability laws to ensure there’s oversight by qualified clinical professionals. More>>