Road users travelling south through the Otago town of Milton this long holiday weekend will face a short detour from State Highway 1/Union Street, as ongoing sewer and stormwater work means this part of the highway is not safe to be fully open.

Clutha District Council is carrying out the pipeline work and had been planning for a full road opening this King’s Birthday holiday weekend. However, the deteriorated road surface means it is not safe for use of the affected section of the southbound lane on SH1/Union Street.  

A detour is available to southbound traffic via Melville Avenue, Centennial Avenue and Springfield Road. This will likely add only a couple of minutes to peoples’ travel. State Highway 1 is a main route south of Dunedin for those travelling for the long weekend to Central Otago, South Otago and Southland. 

The Council and its contractor have approval for traffic management on SH1/Union Street through to 30 June, and work is expected to continue to renew the sewer and stormwater lines, as well as returning the road surface to a safe state.

New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi will work with the Clutha District Council to ensure full and safe use of SH1/Union Street is restored as soon as possible.