$12 million to improve the resilience of roads in the Nelson, Marlborough and Tasman regions

• Hope Bypass earmarked in draft Government Policy Statement on land transport
• $127 million invested in the top of the south’s roads since flooding in 2021 and 2022

The Government is investing over $12 million to improve the resilience of roads in the Nelson, Tasman and Marlborough regions that have been affected by recent extreme weather, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins confirmed today.

A dedicated Transport Resilience Fund has been established for early preventative works to protect the state highway network from future severe weather disruption.

In addition the Prime Minister also confirmed the regions would be eligible for funding from the National Resilience Plan for projects that mitigate the effects of climate change and extreme weather.

Roads in the region that will receive funding from the Transport Resilience Fund are:

• State Highway 6, Whangamoa Hill and Rai Saddle
• State Highway 6, Kawatiri to Owen River erosion
• State Highway 60, Birds Hill overslip
• State Highway 1, flooding at Dashwood
• State Highway 63, the Wash flooding
• Weld Pass long term detour route improvements study
• SH63 Windy Point and Narrows rockfall
• SH65 Higgins rockfall
• Salt Lake flooding investigation
• Tuamarina to Picton flooding

“Nelson, Tasman and Marlborough have experienced repeated extreme weather events in recent years. We need to repair our state highways after these events and also build greater resilience so they’re less affected in the future,” Chris Hipkins said.

“In this year’s budget we established the $419 million Transport Resilience Fund to support these investments that support our region’s recovery.

“Investing in resilience creates savings down the road, as well as ensuring communities aren’t cut off and isolated after extreme weather.

“In this year’s budget we set aside $6 billion in funding to support the implementation of a National Resilience Plan. I can confirm that projects in the top of the south will be considered for funding as part of this ongoing work.

“No region can foot the bill for building transport resilience on their own. That’s why the Government is coming to the table to support regions with a range of fund to help them recover.

“For example, in recent weeks we announced Nelson homeowners can access Government support, including a buyout deal for their damaged homes.

“We are absolutely committed to the region’s recovery,” Chris Hipkins said.

“We know severe weather events will be an ongoing challenge. This funding will repair vulnerable points in the road network to help mitigate the risk of them failing in future storms or other natural hazards,” Transport Minister David Parker said.

“These projects are in addition to the $127 million the Government has invested in the top of the souths roads following flooding in 2021 and 2022.

“The Government also supports completion of the Hope Bypass and is setting aside funding in the recent Government’s recently announced transport plan.

“We are committed to support the region to rebuild and build back stronger from the challenges of recent times,” David Parker said.

The Transport Resilience Fund is a $419 million investment package to build resilience on the national roading network, it was announced as part of Budget 2023. It is comprised of three Crown funding components:

• $100 million for Low-Cost, Low Risk (LCLR) resilience projects on state highways
• $179 million for more complex resilience projects on state highways
• $140 million for resilience projects on local roads

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