The document discusses improving efficiency and resilience on State Highways 1 and 29 connecting to the Port of Tauranga. It outlines the strategic context, NZTA's investment direction focused on economic growth, value for money and road safety. The State Highway Asset Management Plan guides investment to improve customer service. Maintaining route efficiency and resilience is challenging given the environments and constrained budget. Potential long term improvements identified include extending four lane sections on SH1 and SH29, but significant upgrades will take over 10 years due to funding priorities on other major projects.

1. “SH Efficiency & Resilience”
Focus on SH1 & SH29 to Port of Tauranga
Freight & Logistics Forum : BoP Nov 2012
Barry Dowsett- Highways Network Operations, Waikato/BoP : 16 November 2012

2. Overview
• Strategic context
• The NZTA’s investment direction
• State Highway Asset Management Plan
• SH Network “Efficiency” & “Resilience”
• Potential route improvements
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3. Strategic Context
The NZTA seeks to deliver Govt’s transport
objectives (GPS and “Connecting NZ”).
The main means of delivery are by the
National Land Transport Programme
(NLTP), Strategies and Plans eg;
• State Highway Asset Management Plan (SHAMP)
• SH Strategic Network/Corridor Plans
• Regional Asset Management Plans
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4. The NZTA’s investment direction:
2012-15 NLTP
NLTP focus on delivering
GPS targets:
3 key areas targeted;
• Economic growth &
productivity
• Value for money
• Road safety

5. SH Asset Management Plan
SHAMP plays 3 key roles (for HNO delivery):
• it is a route map showing how we plan,
invest and deliver for the future
• It links SH investment to our Customer First
focus, setting target levels
• It is a business case for activities
(maintenance, renewals, operations and
improvements) required to enable the NZTA
to deliver its service to customers
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6. Overview SHAMP update
Further work is being
done on SHAMP to
turn NZTA
“Strategies into an
HNO Action plan”.
This includes how to
implement the 30
year SH Strategy,
during a constrained
economy.
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7. SH Customers Map
• Within the SHAMP ‘Customer First’ values are
indicated - and this has 3 focus areas.
• Of relevance to the Freight & Logistics industry is
the following focus area;
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8. Reducing Costs of doing Business
Each of the 7 performance level areas (within the
Customer Map) has an influence on “Efficient &
Reliable Journeys”.
• Journey Time “Efficiency” comprises elements of
travel speed and reliability. This is more critical
on high volume routes.
• Network “Resilience” is a component of JT
reliability, but is usually related to physical
conditions (eg extreme weather), but can be
improved by good incident management and in
some cases Preventative Maintenance.
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9. Resilience tested! (& response)
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10. White Out –SH1, 4, & 41
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11. One in 50 year storm : 2011
Closures
• SH1 Desert Road – 50 Hours
• SH5 Napier-Taupo – 23 Hours
• SH41 - 30 Hours
Response is “Incident Management” – mainly
undertaken by the HNO Maintenance &
Operations teams, but often involves
emergency services and other agencies
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12. Questions?
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13. Overview
• Strategic context
• The NZTA’s investment direction
• State Highway Asset Management Plan
• SH Network Efficiency
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14. Overview
• Strategic context
• The NZTA’s investment direction
• State Highway Asset Management Plan
• SH Network Efficiency
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15. Potential Future Improvements
NZTA undertaking a number of Strategic
Studies (in parallel with national strategic
development) which are shaping potential
future (out to 30 years) improvements.
• GPS added some potential future ‘Roads of
National Significance’ (RoNS)
2 of these are:
• SH1 Cambridge to Taupo
• SH 29 Piarere to Tauranga
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16. SH1 Cambridge to Taupo
• Strategic Study extends to Desert
Road summit
• Cambridge to Piarere likely to be an
extension of 4 lane Waikato
Expressway
• Piarere to Taupo potentially 2 + 1 lane
(similar to Longswamp to Rangiriri)
• Taupo south likely to be major
realignment with passing lanes
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17. SH 29 Piarere to Tauranga
Study joins Tauranga Urban Network Study just
south of Tauriko.
• Piarere to Te Poi (foot of Kaimai’s) likely to
be 2 lane plus passing (or 2 +1). Predicted
traffic volumes don’t justify 4 laning.
• SH24/29 junction over Kaimai’s to Tauriko
south, likely to be 4 lanes to cater for volume
and steep gradients.
• Road Tunnel options have been considered,
but not viable in current economics.
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18. Kaimai tunnel options
• During 2007- 2009 a number of road
tunnel options were considered in
conjunction with the Waikato Expressway
strategy development.
• Range of tunnel lengths were 3.1km to
6.5km with rough order costs for a 2 lane
tunnel of $1B to $2.1B. Alternative
locations further north were also
considered, but these require substantial
new approach roads.
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19. Kaimai tunnel options
-continued
During 2010 further preliminary
investigation of tunnel options was
undertaken. These covered 10 options
spread over 3 general locations:
• Thompson’s track vicinity (near Te Aroha)
• West of Rail tunnel
• West of SH29
Range of tunnel lengths were 4.7km to 9.5km with
Gradients of 0.5 to 4.8%
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20. Kaimai tunnel options -
continued
• These 10 options required new roading
approaches of between 15.6km and
27.6km with overall costs for a 2 lane
facility of $1.5B - $2.5B
• During 2010-2012 the SH29 Strategic
Study consultants also investigated a
further 3 tunnel options, below the
summit of SH 29, with tunnel lengths of
2.7km to 6.1km and gradients of 2-4%
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21. Kaimai tunnel options -
continued
• All of these investigations (albiet very
preliminary) indicate very high cost (even
for a relatively short 2 lane tunnel) and
uneconomic finance indicator returns (less
than 1.0 at 8% discount rate).
• Conclusion is that a Tunnel is not feasible
in the current (and foreseeable) economic
climate, no matter whether debt funded
or tolled.
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22. Conclusions
• Maintaining route “efficiency and
resilience” is a challenge with the
environments on SH1 & SH29. It requires
vigilant Maintenance and Operation (M&O)
with good “incident management”, in a
constrained M&O budget.
• Significant route improvement is beyond
10 years, with NLTP investment focus on
RoNS and Christchurch re-build etc.
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