North Rural Auckland flood recovery progress North Rural Auckland flood recovery progress
The North Rural area of the Auckland region was the most severely impacted by the storm events of 2023. We’ve made significant progress on repairing storm-damaged roads over the last 18 months, as shown by the following statistics.
Reported sites and slip repairs as of 31 August 2024
- Total number of sites: 323 (67 major, 256 minor)
- Sites currently under construction: 4 (all major)
- Completed sites: 308 (95%, 52 major)
North Rural summary, September 2024
- 4 sites under construction
- 52 of 67 major slips complete (78%)
- all of 256 minor slips complete.
Four major slips are currently under construction:
- Ahuroa Road, Puhoi
- Ridge Road, Riverhead
- Weranui Road, Puhoi
- West Road, Kaukapakapa.
Upcoming sites include:
- Pine Valley Road, Dairy Flat
- Wishart Road, Helensville
- Mill Flat Road Bridge, Coatesville.
The reported number of sites requiring minor to major repairs will change slightly over time as the design and investigation of each slip site develops. We ask for your patience as we repair sites all over Auckland.
To report new issues, please contact us.
Completed slip repair sites
The following is a list of recently completed major sites in the North Rural area. Our thanks go to everyone in each of these communities for your patience and understanding as we made necessary repairs and restored safe connections.
- Ahuroa Road, Puhoi – 5 of 8 slips
- Ashton Road, Leigh
- Coatesville Riverhead Highway, Coatesville
- Goat Island Road, Leigh
- Haruru Road, Wainui
- Kahikatea Flats Road, Warkworth
- Krippner Road, Puhoi – 22 slipsÂ
- Mahurangi Road East, Snells Beach
- Makarau Road, Makarau
- Matakana Valley Road, Matakana – 9 of 10 slips
- Moir Hill Road, Warkworth – 11 slips
- Pakiri Road, Leigh and Pakiri – 8 slips
- South Head Road, Helensville
- Tahekeroa Road, Tahekeroa
- Takatu Road, Tawharanui Peninsula - 6 slips
- Tauhoa Road, Tauhoa
- Wainui Road, Wainui
- Waitoki Road, Waitoki
- Waiwhiu Road, Dome Valley
- Weranui Road, Wainui – 6 of 6 slips
- West Coast Road, Kaipara Flats – 9 slips
Ahuroa Road, Puhoi
Road status: open, single lane with stop/go traffic managementÂ
4 September 2024
At site RP7784, east of J Tolhopf Road, all piles have been built. The site team is temporarily away while details for the anchors are being addressed. A lane closure with stop/go traffic signals remains in place.
A Mason Contractors maintenance crew is also working on Ahuroa Road, doing extensive road rehabilitation and some minor slip repairs. The current stage, 2B, should be complete by the end of October 2024. The next stage is scheduled to start construction in January 2025 and will complete the remaining section to J Tolhopf Road.
21 August 2024
All piling work is now complete on the site east of J Tolhopf Road (site RP7784). Work on the timber lagging and drainage behind the new wall is now under way.
26 July 2024
Work east of J Tolhopf (site RP7784) is progressing, despite the weather and difficult ground conditions. To date, 38 of 46 piles have been drilled and concreted.
 
26 June 2024
Two slip sites, near 849 Ahuroa Road and the ‘hairpin’ bend, are set for final guardrail and line-marking work during the first week of July (weather permitting). This will only require a stop/go lane closure.
Work east of J Tolhopf (site RP7784) started on 27 May. Benching is complete and 4 piles have been installed. The team are encountering some hard rock similar to the other repairs along the road. Approximately 2 months’ work remains at this site. Stop/go and occasional stop/stop traffic management is occurring, but no delays have been noted as a result of these Downer works.
22 May 2024
Work on the main slip site near 900 Ahuroa Road has been completed, and the road is now open to residents on a stop/go basis while further slips are being worked on.
Construction works near 859 Ahuroa Road (on the northern side) began in early May, and one lane is closed. All timber piles have been installed and backfilling is under way.
Work beginning near J Tolhopf Road from 27 May is expected to take around 3 months.
Of 8 slips identified along Ahuroa Road, 3 are largely complete, with 5 remaining.
Another 2 slip sites are being repaired alongside road maintenance work further down the road towards Puhoi.
24 April 2024
Downer is planning to begin construction work opposite 859 Ahuroa Road (on the northern side) from Monday 29 April. Access will be maintained with a stop/go in place. This work is expected to take around 4 weeks.
Work continues near 900 Ahuroa Road with a full road closure. Work in this area is expected to take until 7 May.
The design and methodology for repairs to Ahuroa Road at RP 7.784, approximately 50 metres east of J Tolhopf Road, is progressing. Access will be maintained, but at times there may be a delay of 10 minutes when travelling through this section of road. During peak times, Downer will ensure access is uninterrupted. We will provide an update once a construction start date is confirmed.Â
22 April 2024
All piling has now been completed with a total of 149 piles installed. Our priority now shifts to drainage works and the capping beam. The focus has now shifted to the concrete work on the capping beam of the retaining wall. Â The heavy machinery within the road corridor restricts both vehicle and pedestrian traffic in the area.
8 April 2024
The construction team is installing the last of the 300m of piling and continuing to install the capping beam, poured to support the retaining wall and road.
18 March 2024
All 900mm 17m piles are in and Downer is now installing 900mm 12m piles using steel casing.
February 2024
Downer is making good progress, with 73 of 150 piles (some up to 17 metres deep) and 80 soil nails in place.
January 2024
Downer has now reestablished all construction equipment on site in preparation for the months ahead. The team is drilling and filling piles on the upper section of the site and the road will continue to remain closed for the duration of these works.
December 2023
Downer, on behalf of Auckland Transport (AT), continues to make progress on the remediation of the roadway on Ahuroa Hill. Since construction activities
began, a total of 16 piles have been drilled across the two sections. This is a considerable effort given the ground conditions which includes hard rock at a much lower depth than expected.
The construction team will be taking a break over the holiday period, from Thursday 22nd December 2023 returning on Monday 8th January 2024. During
this period the road will remain closed with all current temporary traffic management remaining in place.
26 October 2023
Ahuroa Road is proving difficult to repair. The original design was completed and works began in July 2023 on the permanent reinstatement. Unfortunately, the underlying rock layer is substantially deeper than thought, which has required a review of design options and a temporary hold on works.
AT is assessing six new design options and will select the most appropriate. Once we have the preferred option, Downer and AT will be able to provide programme information to the community around timing and options.
AT remains committed to the successful completion of these works and expects that we will be able restart construction within four weeks and have the road open by April 2024.
10 October 2023
On Ahuroa Road, several major slips have completely closed the road through to Puhoi. There has been considerable progress on the slip at Ahuroa Hill RP8200-8600. Soil nails acting like anchors are in place, which means the slope is now stabilised against further erosion. Shotcrete (sprayed-on concrete) was completed in September, as shown in the image on the right. This specialised process involves the high-pressure spraying of concrete onto the retaining wall's surface, reinforcing its structural integrity. Some remaining components for this slip are currently in design.
21 September 2023
Completion of works is expected by February 2024.
7 September 2023
Ahuroa Road is being worked on in sections. Some sections have already been completed, some are in construction. One section near J Tolhopf Road, where there was a major slip, is in the design phase. Designs are being prepared to repair this section in conjunction with the other repairs.
There are several retaining walls to be completed and will be worked on in sections. Each section will be completed separately. Road sealing will be completed afterwards.
30 May 2023
- Final design has been approved. Works to start shortly.
- Road status - open from both ends with one section of road closed at J Tolhopf Road.
3 May 2023
- 8 underslips have been identified.
- Geotechnical investigation has been completed, and an inclinometer has been put in place.
- Preliminarily assessment and design for the road rebuild were completed and presented on 20 April 2023. We are now moving forward to the final design phase using the existing road alignment.
- Road status – open from both ends with one section of the road closed at J Tolhopf Road.
Dairy Flat Highway, Dairy Flat
Road status: open
25 September 2024
The final design process is underway for repairs needed on Dairy Flat Highway. We expect to begin construction work later this year.
Leigh Road, Leigh
25 September 2024
AT and Downer are expecting to start work on Leigh Road, near Schollum Road, from 7 October 2024. The work will involve the construction of a retaining wall and shoulder repair work. A lane closure will be in place with stop/go operating.
We expect to complete work before Christmas.
Vector will also be operating either side of these works to move powerlines and poles. They will notify residents separately.
26 July 2024
Currently in design. Power cables near the slip site will impact design and construction methodology. We are working with Vector to address this.
Matakana Valley Road, Matakana
Road status: open, single lane with stop/go traffic management
There are 10 slips along Matakana Valley Road. Repairs at the first site started on 29 February 2024. To date, 9 of the 10 sites are complete. We expect to begin work on the 10th site, near the waterfall, in early 2025.
21 August 2024
Site 9 (of 10 sites) has now been largely completed. This month, pavement and asphalting, line marking and guard rail installation have been completed. Minor remedial work will be undertaken as the weather allows. Site 10 remains in design and work is planned to begin later in the year.
26 July 2024
This month, we installed 16 piles at site 9. All piling and retaining wall work is now complete, and pavement work will progress this coming month. Site 10 is still in design. Work should begin later in the year.Â
26 June 2024
The team here are making great progress and are well ahead of programme. Eight sites have now been completed, with another one under way and one in design.
22 April 2024
Three slip sites have been repaired and another 5 are under way.Â
At RP773 (below left) 17 steel UC beams have been installed, ready for the lagging to be installed. Further along the road 39 timber poles have been installed with another 8 to come (see below right).
At RP7037 timber poles and lagging is complete (below left), while at RP7730 all steel beams are in place and timber lagging and backfilling is under way (below right).