South Westland’s recently reconstructed Bailey bridge across the Waiho/ Waiau River will be closed overnight from this Sunday for most of May for final construction work.

The closures on State Highway 6 between the Fox and Franz Josef glaciers will be in place for three weeks, Sunday, 5 May through to Friday 24 May, between 9 pm and 6 am, Sunday to Friday each week.

• Friday and Saturday nights the bridge will be open all night.

What is happening at the bridge over these three weeks?
Timber running planks will be laid over the bridge deck to provide a smoother journey, and the deck also needs to have a sealing layer applied at the end.

There will be electronic message boards on State Highway 6 advertising the night closure hours at Hawea and Makarora in Otago and Hokitika in Westland.

“Once on State Highway 6, there is no road detour around the Waiho/ Waiau River, between the two glacier villages,” says Moira Whinham, Maintenance Contract Manager, NZ Transport Agency.

“We will be communicating these closures with the hospitality providers on the West Coast and we have delayed this final piece of work until after the school holidays to minimise inconvenience to as many highway travellers as possible. We appreciate everyone’s patience while this work is completed before the winter sets in.”

Plan ahead for a safe, enjoyable journey. Keep up to date with:
• Traffic updates: nzta.govt.nz/traffic
• Facebook: facebook.com/NZTAsouthisland
• Twitter Canterbury/West Coast: twitter.com/NZTA/CWC
• Twitter Otago/Southland: twitter.com/NZTAOS
• Journey planner: journeys.nzta.govt.nz
• Phone: 0800 4 HIGHWAYS (0800 44 44 49)

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