Now that the new Te Ahu a Turanga: Manawatū Tararua Highway is open, the question of what happens to the maintenance of the detour roads is a timely one.

---

While the highway was being constructed, NZTA took over the maintenance of several roads that have been used as detour routes:

• Saddle Road
• Pahiatua Track
• Makomako Road
• Pahiatua-Mangahao Road
• Ballance Valley Gorge Road
• Woodlands Road

Tararua Alliance and NZTA are working on a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the hand-back of these local roads to Council. Tararua Alliance will be taking over the maintenance of these roads in the near future, with a date to be confirmed as part of the MOU.

Initial repairs will be made to the local roads to rectify wear and tear caused by the additional state highway traffic, funded by NZTA. Going forward, the Saddle Road will be maintained at the level appropriate to the amount of traffic of a low volume road, like it was before the Gorge closed.

Traffic counters are in place across the detour roads at the locations used for the toll assessment consultation last year. These will stay out for at least three months to assess the changes to traffic over time. These will help inform repair strategies, with the bulk of repairs planned to commence between October and December.

Funding secured for first stage of Lindauer Trail

In good news for cyclists, Council has had funding of $250,000 approved by NZTA from the Te Ahu a Turanga Path Fund for the first stage of the ‘Lindauer Trail’. This funding will enable work to start on a cycle trail from the Woodville roundabout to the Old Gorge Cemetery later this year.  

The Lindauer Trail started as a Woodville community project that was later handed to Council to progress as part of the 2024-34 Long Term Plan. The trail forms part of the Te Āpiti Manawatū Gorge Masterplan and was named in honour of the artist Gottfried Lindauer who was buried in 1926 in the Old Gorge Cemetery, one of the cemeteries located along the route.

Stage one of this proposal seeks to get to this point. Further funding will be needed to connect the path to the Gorge itself. The overall objective of the Lindauer Trail is to form a shared walking/cycling path from Woodville to Ferry Reserve, involving some on and off-road segments and two bridge crossings.

The funding that has been secured for the first stage seeks to establish a safe cycle-path across and/or around the narrow bridges.
Addressing these key safety risks contributes to the broader shared pathway objective.