Invercargill-Bluff walkway and cycle trail construction resumes

Construction works are underway for the next section of the walkway and cycle trail connecting Invercargill and Bluff.

The 6.5km section will connect the existing trail near the Invercargill City Council Sewerage Treatment Plant to Kekeno Place at Awarua. It will generally be following the existing estuary tide banks and includes the construction of two new bridges over Duck Creek and the Mokotua Stream.

Funding for the $450k project is a joint effort with a substantial amount coming from the Te Araroa Trails Trust, with additional support from the Community Trust of Southland, the ILT Foundation, along with the Invercargill City Council (ICC) and Environment Southland (ES).

The contract for the construction was let to Wilson Contractors Ltd, a Kingston-based company with extensive experience in cycleway construction. Some of their recent projects include the Queenstown Trails Cycleway, the Around the Mountains Cycle Trail and the Roxburgh Gorge Cycle Trail.

Environment Southland transport policy analyst and project manager Russell Hawkes said work was advancing well and he expected to have the current stretch finished by November. He said further discussions on how to link the Kekeno Place end of the trail to Bluff were happening between ICC, ES and the New Zealand Transport Agency.

Construction works for the Invercargill-Bluff walkway and cycle trail commenced in 2010, with sections of the walkway being completed as funding becomes available, until it reaches Bluff. The trail currently links the existing Waihopai Walkway with 1.7kms of track from the Estuary Boardwalk to the Invercargill City Council Sewerage Treatment Plant.

ENDS

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