Pothole nation: 'This is the worst the roads have ever been'

Author: Neil Reid,
Publish Date: Wed, 28 Dec 2022, 9:23AM

Kiwis will take to a road network this summer described as in its “worst state” - with rim-wrecking, tyre-popping potholes listed at the top of driver nasties.

The deteriorating state of roads – including some of our major state highways – has led to Kiwis creating social media pages to highlight stretches blighted by potholes, and vigilante residents filling potholes themselves after some council road crews failed to do so.

On the East Coast, the condition of State Highway 35 – the link between Gisborne to Ōpōtiki, which is blighted by potholes, numerous washouts and patches of gravel – has been described as a “bloody disgrace”.

Transport officials have launched the country’s largest road renewal programme, telling the Herald a previous “flatlining” of funding for road maintenance had created “a backlog of renewals”.

The work will see more than 2400 lane kilometres of state highways being either resealed or rebuilt from Cape Reinga to Bluff - more than 10 per cent of New Zealand’s state highway network.

Major roadworks are being carried out near Te Puia Springs on SH35, with the section being described as a “bloody disgrace”. Photo / Neil Reid

Concerns over the situation – which has seen two out of every three Automobile Association members surveyed unhappy over road conditions – comes as the AA highlights what it believes is a $400m repair shortfall during this Government’s term.

“Ahead of the last election, the AA developed something called our ‘Election Calls’ which were essentially the top actions we would like the next Government take,” AA road safety spokesman Dylan Thomsen said.

“Improving road maintenance was the No 1 election call we had for 2020. We had identified it back then that the state of the roads was deteriorating and it needed addressing.”

At that point, the AA’s calculations estimated an additional $300m was needed for road maintenance each year.

“And that was to catch up on the backlog of work.”

A large pothole on the side of SH33 near Paengaroa. Photo / Andrew Warner

Thomsen said Waka Kotahi was spending all the money it could on road maintenance and repairs.

The Government had contributed a further $500m over the current three-year term for road repairs, but that fell short by $400m of what AA estimated needed to be spent.

Thomsen said many AA members were scathing of the condition of some of the country’s roads.

The route to Anaura Bay, on the East Coast, is still damaged after flooding in March. Photo / Neil Reid

“What we hear from AA members really regularly is that this is the worst that the roads have ever been, that they can remember,” he said. “A lot of our members have been members and driving in New Zealand for decades.”

Potholes were the most common complaint from motorists.

In October, dozens of motorists were stranded on the side of State Highway 2 through the Kaimai Ranges after they suffered wheel and tyre damage from a large pothole.

Figures released by the Act Party showed that in the first 10 months of the year, Waka Kotahi had received 555 complaints from motorists about vehicle damage caused by potholes. Just four of those complaints were upheld.

The number of complaints had risen from 298 in 2020, to 421 in 2021.

In a statement, Waka Kotahi said potholes often appeared during heavy rain events, “and we’re seeing these events occur more frequently now due to climate change”.

But Thomsen said the impact of heavy rain was only highlighting a lack of preventative road maintenance.

“The reason why we are having so many potholes appear [is] not just because we have had a lot of rain, but [that does] certainly accelerate the problem,” he said.

Pakowhai Rd, in Hawke's Bay, was the scene of 88 reported potholes in a week alone in late September. Photo / Warren Buckland

“It is the fact that for quite a number of years now we haven’t been doing the preventative maintenance work - on the highways, in particular - to have them withstand that heavier rainfall.”

Waka Kotahi said water was the “primary cause” of potholes.

In older surfaces, if there was a crack or a displaced stone, it would allow water to sit in the road surface.

“As vehicles drive over the ponding water, tyres create hydraulic pressure, forcing the water down into the pavement,” a spokesperson said. “Over time, as vehicles continue to run over the pothole, it’ll grow in size as weakened areas break off.

“Sections of road that are due for renewal are often the worst affected areas as the pavement and surface are weaker and starting to fail.”

After potholes, the biggest complaint to AA about the road network was the state of road marking and signage, vegetation on the side of roads not being cut back, and culverts and drains not being regularly cleaned.

The latter can lead to flooding over the road surface, making for dangerous driving conditions and also speeding up the process of potholes forming.

A section of SH35 which was badly damaged in flooding in early 2022 was still covered in gravel seven months later. Photo / Neil Reid

It’s certainly not just potholes that have residents in Gisborne and the East Coast furious about the state of SH35.

The main highway – in an area that has been hammered by big storms over the past three years – features wash-outs, sections down to a single lane, and long-standing areas of shingle.

Repairs to some weather damage caused last year are still yet to begin.

Long-time Gisborne District councillor Bill Burdett, who stood down at the October election, described a section south of Ruatoria as a “bloody disgrace” and the slow progress repairing damage closer to Ōpōtiki as “a joke”.

The state of the road was “having an impact on the people on the coast, and that is very unfair,” Burdett said.

Some East Coast locals were even considering refusing to pay Road User Charges in protest.

Fellow former Gisborne District councillor Manu Caddie – who regularly travels up and down SH35 – acknowledged there was “angst” over the level of RUC some locals paid, who then had to contend with what they thought was a “poorly maintained” highway.

“It’s fair to say there is a lot of frustration,” Caddie said.

Slower traffic speed limits in place near the bridge through Tokomaru Bay which was washed away by flooding in March. Photo / Neil Reid

“The feeling is that the bigger cities and bigger highways in other places get more resources.”

But in some instances the frustration was “misdirected,” Caddie said.

The East Coast had been hammered by huge storms in successive years, and given the geology of the region – including hillsides that are prone to slipping – people had to realise “we are going to have a constant state of maintenance and repair”.

“It is not like we are going to get great roads free of roadworks,” Caddie said. “The clearing of the land certainly hasn’t helped the erosion issues and that is the way it is going to be.

“With more severe weather events more often, the cost is only going to increase. There are definitely some big challenges up ahead, if not already. I think we are going to have longer periods of impassable roads.”

A section of Waimate North Rd, in Northland, with a large number of potholes. Photo / Peter de Graaf

Speaking about the state of roads overall, a Waka Kotahi spokesperson said the organisation ensured state highways remained “safe” through inspection and “reactive maintenance processes set out in each road maintenance contract”.

These processes ensured that age-related faults such as rutting were recorded and repaired on a regular basis.

“This ensures that our state highway network will continue to be safe and accessible at all times,” the spokesperson said.

“The volume of state highway renewal work decreased in the mid-2010s, in line with a flatlining of available funding for road maintenance, and this has created a backlog of renewals that we continue to work through with the additional funding received for this purpose in the 2021-24 National Land Transport Programme.

“We’re committed to improving the overall condition of our state highway network, and the work people will see taking place over the next six months is evidence of that commitment.”

Thomsen, of the AA, said he didn’t know enough about the SH35 situation to comment on that stretch of road.

But a common complaint the AA heard from those in rural areas around the country was that they were being “short-changed” when it came to the state of some of their roads.

“What that shows to me is how there is a psychological element around roads. The state of an area’s roads is like its shop window,” he said.

“If people are driving around every day and they are seeing a lot of potholes and old faded paint and signs that are past their used-by date ... it is natural for them to feel that things are not going well in their area.”

Annual AA member surveys had tracked a steady rise in “dissatisfaction” with the state of the roads.

In 2018, 55 per cent cent said they were concerned about the quality of road services and potholes in their area. That grew to 65 per cent in 2020 and then 68 per cent in early 2022.

“I would not be surprised at all if the figure doesn’t go up again further [in 2023],” Thomsen said.

“Even at 68 per cent, what it means is that essentially two out of three members we have surveyed aren’t happy with the standard of the roads in their area. People are grumpy, frustrated and annoyed by it.

“New Zealanders have noticed and they are not happy. They know the roads should be in better shape than this and they want something done.”

Summer of roadworks set to cause delays

Road contractors have begun what has been described as New Zealand’s biggest repair campaign.

And as Kiwis head away for summer trips around the country, a road safety expert has warned to plan ahead and be prepared for travel to take longer than expected.

Waka Kotahi’s works will cover more than 10 per cent of the state highway network.

“In terms of scale, this is the most significant renewal programme we have ever undertaken,” a Waka Kotahi spokesperson said.

Sections of SH35, and other roads leading off the highway up the East Coast, are down to single lane or in gravel. Photo / Neil Reid

“Our investment in the national maintenance programme through the 2021-24 National Land Transport Programme is increasing to $2.8 billion, including an estimated $300 million for emergency works. This is a 30 per cent increase on the previous three years (2018-21).”

Remediation works will be done across the country, with Waka Kotahi saying a “significant portion” will be carried out in the Waikato and Bay of Plenty regions.

Automobile Association road safety spokesman Dylan Thomsen said those on summer road trips should be prepared for the delays the necessary works would cause.

“I am afraid to say but you are likely to encounter more road works than you might normally have expected,” he said.

“And that means you are probably going to have some stop-gos at different times, and travel slower where there is work going on and new chip seal being put down.

“It is going to mean that you are going to have to stop, slow down and take even longer than you would normally have budgeted for to get where you are going.”

Thomsen also recommended drivers keep an eye on the driving habits of motorists ahead of them to avoid hitting potholes, as they could lead to vehicle damage or potentially a crash.

“It is understandable to say that this is a major highway and it should be in better shape than this, but right now what we know is in a lot of cases even our busiest and biggest highways can have some serious and bad spots with potholes and damage,” he said.

“When I am driving, I am trying to look far up the road and look at other vehicles. I am not going to be able to spot a pothole 200m or 100m up the road, but if I am seeing cars with brake lights going on or moving left or right in the lane, that can give me a hint that there might be something up ahead and be ready for that.”