State Highway 2 at Pūtōrino, south of Waiora, has reopened this morning following the installation of the new ‘Acrow’ bridge.

The new one-way bridge has replaced the Bailey bridge which had been in place through Waikare Gorge since the months following Cyclone Gabrielle.

The new bridge is 1 metre wider than the old Bailey bridge. It’s also stronger and quieter.

The new bridge will accommodate wider vehicles and have more capacity for HPMV and more over-dimensional vehicles. It has a chipseal surface. 

Following this weekend’s 24 hour closure, there will be an additional 3 nights of closures, to focus on widening the north and south bound approaches to the new bridge. These will be 9pm to 5am each night from tonight (Sunday 7), Monday 8 and Tuesday 9 September. The road will then reopen 5am Wednesday 10 September (at this time, the Acrow bridge will be fully operational).

Now the 24-hour closure has finished, the new bridge is open to light, 50MAX and HPMV vehicles (less than 3.2 metres wide only) until the first night closure tonight when work starts to widen the approaches.

If you’re travelling between Napier and Wairoa before the closure times, please allow enough travel time (a minimum of 1 hour from either location) to make it to the gorge before the nightly closures start.  

During the closures, residents south of Pūtōrino will be able to travel to and from the Napier area, but not north past the gorge.