Major Waitomo Highway Works Completed

The installation of new guardrailing earlier in June along a section of State Highway 4 between Te Kuiti and Taumarunui has completed a $3.2 million package of highway improvement projects in the Waitomo District. The projects include a new passing lane at Meads Hill on SH3 and major slip repairs on SH3, SH4 and SH37.

The new passing lane, located 3 km south of Te Kuiti, will provide passing opportunities for traffic travelling up the steep incline immediately adjacent to the former family farm of rugby legend Colin Meads.

The new guardrailing completed a140-metre-long timber retaining wall that was constructed near Mapiu to repair a major slip caused by heavy rain last August. The slip, located approximately 4 km south of Mapiu, affected a 150 metre section of SH4, and 80 metres of the southbound lane was lost.

Slips have also been recently repaired on SH3 at Stockmans Hill and Mahoenui, and on SH37 near Waitomo Caves.

NZTA acting regional director, Kaye Clark, says the slip repairs and new passing lane are part of an ongoing strategy to improve passing opportunities and route security in the Waitomo district: “The geology in the Waitomo area is challenging in that the ground is prone to slippage in many areas, and the rugged terrain makes passing quite difficult in places, especially on steep inclines where trucks often have to travel quite slow. The feedback we have received about the new Meads Hill passing lane has been extremely positive. A number of road users – including truck drivers – have told us the new passing lane has made travelling south of Te Kuiti a lot easier.”

The new Meads Hill passing lane
Before and after photos of the major slip repair on SH4 near Mapiu