A temporary bailey bridge on5 Maniototo Road over the Taieri River has opened this week, reopening a route that has been closed since the start of last year.
Approval was given at Council’s 6 July meeting for a temporary replacement bridge, on condition that the adjoining landowner meet half the cost of monthly hire of the bailey bridge for a three-year period.
The original single-lane four-span bridge (Bridge 145) was closed after a significant flood event in January 2021, which added a journey length of 16 kilometres.
The bailey bridge will be in place until provision of a permanent structure can be considered as part of the 2024 Long-term Plan.
The southern approach on and off the bridge is not suitable for all large towing vehicles and the speed across the bridge will be restricted to 10km/h.
A big thanks to Waka Kotahi, Downer and Fulton Hogan for their great work getting the bailey bridge back in place and to the local community for their patience, as well as the Patersons, the adjoining landowner, for meeting half the rental costs and their support of the process.
