Sth Auckland Work Rail Progress

 

Good progress is being made in preparation for electrification and  rail development in Manurewa and Papatoetoe as bridges get rebuilt to ensure there’s enough space for electrified overhead wires to run beneath them.

Contractors working to replace the St George St rail overbridge in Papatoetoe will reopen the bridge on Sunday five days earlier than planned.

One lane of traffic at a time has been closed across the St George St bridge since late September, as preliminary works were completed.

It will close completely on Boxing Day until January 16 for the main work to be done, when the bridge will be demolished and rebuilt, with a slimmer deck structure allowing room for the overhead wires.

Bridge St remains closed until late January as preliminary works and the main construction are carried out.

Three bridges in Manurewa needed rebuilding -Jutland Rd, Browns Rd and Station Rd.
In Manurewa, Jutland Rd has been re- opened to traffic  as contractors completed the replacement of the bridge.

Shiny new Jutland Rd

The train from Jutland Rd bridge

Work is well underway on the replacement of the Browns Rd and Station Rd bridges, both of which will close on Boxing Day for an extended period. Browns Rd is due to reopen in early February and Station Rd at the end of January.

Jutland Rd will be available as the main traffic detour, via Russell Rd and Jellicoe Rd.

Station Rd will also close for four days while piling works are completed for the new bridge abutments, avoiding an extended period of partial closures.

The road will be closed from 5am on Sunday until midnight on Wednesday and an alternative access to the Manurewa shopping centre remains open via Great South Rd and Station Rd East.

Clevedon Rd in Papakura will also close on December 26 through until mid-March while that bridge is also replaced.

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11 Comments

 
  1. Paul in Sydney says:

    Are they making room for a 3rd track - freight or even 4th in the re builds

  2. karl says:

    That’s been asked in every post about the matter.

    The answer, sadly, remains “no” as far as I am aware.

    Which is unsurprising, because KiwiRail has been given less disposable cash by the government than a beggar on Queen Street has available.

  3. Brian says:

    Jutland Road has room for 2 extra tracks.

  4. karl says:

    Does it? I happily stand corrected, especially if that is the case for further bridges.

  5. rtc says:

    Matt L talked to the electrification team at the Newmarket open day and they stated all bridges are being built to allow for at least 3 tracks below them.

  6. Matt L says:

    rtc - that’s right and that came from the guy running the project so he should know

  7. Patrick R says:

    So these new ROAD bridges are all coming out of Kiwi Rail’s budget?

  8. Matt L says:

    Patrick - They are paid for as part of the governments $500mil towards electrification infrastructure so it isn’t out of their normal budgets.

    The thing is if it wasn’t for electrification then these bridges wouldn’t need replacing. If anything Kiwirail are actually benefiting from it as by making them wide enough for 3 tracks it will make it much cheaper for them in a few years to lay a third track for freight

    By comparison the Sturges Rd rail bridge needed to be replaced due to its age and the fact the concrete was cracking etc. It is mostly being paid for by the council and the NZTA I believe.

  9. Patrick R says:

    Thanks Matt, good to hear

  10. karl says:

    The Sturges Road bridge is also being widened for cars, so it’s appropriate that the local Council pays.

    Oh, and hooray for the triple-tracking future-proofing.

  11. Simon says:

    Amen to that! At least`s that`s one time something won`t have to be done again when there is a rail upgrade. I could just see the same headline 10years later…And there will be no trains this weekend because Kiwirail has to rebuild three bridges all over again so that a third track can be laid!

 

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