MEDIA RELEASE

24 March 2017 | AUCKLAND & NORTHLAND

More time required to complete testing and commissioning at Waterview Connection

Testing and commissioning of the complex systems that will ensure the safe operation of the Waterview Tunnel are continuing and will not be completed in time for an April opening, the NZ Transport Agency has announced.

The Transport Agency and Well-Connected Alliance are working towards opening the tunnel within the next two to three months, with precise timeframes dependent on the testing and commissioning work currently underway.

For the tunnel to operate efficiently and safely each piece of equipment needs to be thoroughly tested to ensure that it works both individually and as part of a wider system, as well as in conjunction with the rest of the transport operating network.

“Completing this thorough testing is critical to the opening of the tunnel”, says the NZ Transport Agency’s Auckland Highway Manager, Brett Gliddon.

“The Transport Agency uses best practice testing and commissioning regimes and while this work is taking longer than we’d have liked, the Waterview Connection has been in construction for five years and short delays like this are not uncommon for a project of this size and complexity.”

The Waterview Connection, which is being delivered by the Well-Connected Alliance on behalf of the NZ Transport Agency is the largest and most ambitious roading project ever undertaken in New Zealand.

“The Well-Connected Alliance and the NZ Transport Agency are continuing to work hard to ensure the Waterview Connection is delivered to the highest standards and we’re looking forward to sharing this crucial piece of transport infrastructure with all New Zealanders as soon as we can,” says Brett Gliddon.

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