A stretch of State Highway 5 Napier-Taupō Road at Tarawera will close for one night later next month for asphalting.

The road will be closed from 9pm on Saturday 28 March and is expected to reopen at 7am the following day (Sunday 29 March). 

No detour is available during this time.

For those travelling between Napier and Taupō, please allow a minimum of 1 ½ hours to get through the Tarawera section before the closure is put in place at 9pm.

During the work, the area just north of Tarawera will be asphalted. 

Stop/go traffic management was looked into as an option, however a full closure is required because there is not enough room to carry out the work under a stop/go traffic management. 

Access for residents and local businesses will be available to particular locations, while emergency services will be assisted through the site.

Crews will begin preparation work the night before under stop/stop traffic management with up to 20-minute delays, 6pm Friday 27 March to 6am Saturday 28 March. 

This work is weather dependent and may change at short notice. The contingency dates are Friday 10 and Saturday 11 April.