Two significant moves are underway on major road projects in the North Island.
A request for tenders is about to go out to design and build the Cambridge to Piarere extension to the Waikato Expressway.
At the same time, Hutt City Council is looking to hire consultants for work on protecting a route for its Cross Valley Link, which is planned as a feeder to the proposed Petone to Grenada highway.
Both the expressway and highway are Roads of National Significance (RONS).
The contract should be let late this year and the aim was to open the road in 2032, said NZTA.
“The new expressway will improve journeys by reducing congestion, improving safety, improving travel time reliability and boosting the region’s economic growth. It will provide a more resilient roading network for this critical corridor,” the agency said online.
Plans would be done for how the important Karāpiro Road intersection with SH1 would be managed.
In Lower Hutt, the Cross Valley Link has been talked about for years, as a way to link the industrial southeastern end of the Hutt Valley at Seaview with State Highway 2 on the western side, via a new bridge across the Hutt River.
A council tender document said securing the route would be a “critical milestone”.
The council would be hiring consultants for engineering, planning, environmental assessment, transport planning, traffic engineering, and project management services.