Dangerous driving at ‘nightmare’ Tāhunanui roadworks

A Parkers Road resident is frustrated by the persistent roadworks being done on the road and by the dangers being posed by drivers failing to obey the signage.

“It’s been a bit of a nightmare,” he said. “It’s just been going on forever.”

The man, who preferred not to be named, expected the roadworks would be completed by April last year, according to a letter from the contractor they received before Christmas 2021.

“We haven’t really seen much information since.”

Another concern of his are drivers not obeying the signage which is putting people in danger.

“People are not observing those ‘road closed’ signs, I think because they’re frustrated.”

With the section of Parkers Road closed one-way only and closed to non-residents, drivers have to detour around Golf Road, Green Street, and Roto Street before returning to Parkers Road rather than just driving down the street.

“People are running the stop signs and running the red lights,” he said. “We almost collected a guy the other day… but he’s probably feeling the same as the rest of us, just frustrated, because no one’s telling us what’s going on.”

However, Nelson City Council’s group manager infrastructure Alec Louverdis said affected residents are being kept up to date with the last mailer being sent out on 12 January. Updates are also provided on social media, the Antenno app, and on the Our Nelson and Shape Nelson websites.

But Alec did confirm that the roadworks, part of the Awatea Pump Station upgrade, have been delayed primarily because of the impact of Covid-19 on overseas supply channels for construction materials. Wet weather and the poor condition of underground have also resulted in delays.

As for drivers not obeying the signage, Alec says those breaking the speed limit and putting others in danger could be subject to police action.

“The current road layout is the only option we have while we dig up the other lane for new pipework,” he says. “A full road closure is not considered necessary outside of normal working hours and would add further inconvenience to residents in the area.”

The Parkers Road lane was closed for trenching works which are scheduled to be completed by April. The overall upgrade, which includes decommissioning the two current stations and commissioning the new one, is expected to be completed in August.

The new wastewater pump station on Awatea Place will help prevent future sewer overflows, better cater for future development in Tāhunanui, and minimise the impact of severe weather events.

“We really appreciate the patience of the residents close by to this project, we are aware that the sheet piling work can be very noisy, but it is necessary to carry out deep excavation and to provide a safe working space for the contractor,” Alec says.

“We apologise for the delay and look forward to this important project being completed.”

Local Democracy Reporting is Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air