September 20, 2017
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Money down the potholes The appalling state of north Rodney’s roads is being blamed on the weather. While Auckland Transport (AT) won’t provide figures on how many calls it is receiving about the roads in the north, Rodney Local Board chair Beth Houlbrooke confirms that roading issues are the number one complaint that board members deal with on a daily basis. “I can’t even go to the supermarket without being accosted, and I think it is getting worse,” she says. “There is concern that some roads that seem adequate are receiving treatment, ahead of roads that are obviously failing.” Ms Houlbrooke says service level agreements with AT’s major roading contractor will be re-negotiated early next year and this will be an opportunity to revisit road treatments and budgets. An AT spokesperson says that this is the second wettest year on record for Auckland, which has put additional pressure on the roading network. “During the wet months there are temporary fixes done on roads, and in the drier months (usually October to March) the long-term fixes and upgrades are done,” he says. “In the case of sealed roads, this ensures the water does not get under the seal, which can cause it to lift, and in the case of unsealed roads, the water can mean the material does not have time to get bedded down enough.” He says there are three graders working on unsealed roads, on the north Rodney network. A Downer spokesperson says
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localmatters.co.nz The poor state of north Rodney’s roads is taking its toll on vehicles. Warkworth Beaurepaires owner Brendan Woolley is seeing this sort of damage on tyres on an “all too regular” basis.
permanent pavement repairs on sealed roads require dry weather. “This is why local residents may see more road work over summer when the weather is more predictable.” Downer confirms that traffic management teams are receiving a lot
of roadside “feedback” from residents. Some road workers say they are regularly being abused and tooted at. “We do ask that local residents drive to the conditions and take care when passing road workers. We are local, too, and we want to ensure everyone
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gets home safely each day,” the Downer spokesperson says. Although AT would not confirm how much it spends on road maintenance in Rodney, a report to the Local Board earlier this year stated that $14.6 million was spent on sealed road routine maintenance, including pothole filling and small pavement patches, across the whole of Auckland in 2015/16. The report also stated that cars cause continued page 2 WWW.RDCONSTRUCTION.CO.NZ
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