New road for business traffic opens

A new roading connection that will decrease travel times and open up a significant new area for commercial development has opened in Mangere.

Manukau City Council opened the Saville Drive extension on Friday, completing the final part of a direct link between Massey Road and James Fletcher Drive. The project involved creating a 60 metre bridge over the Harania Creek, extending Saville Drive 0.5km and installing a signalised intersection.

Manukau City Council Transport Portfolio Leader David Collings says the new road will be of great benefit to people driving in the industrial and commercial area.

“In particular it will reduce the time and distance travelled by heavy vehicles. Previously the only option for vehicles driving between Favona and Massey Road was a difficult, slow route.

“The other major benefit of this project is that it will open up a significant area for commercial development that is well-suited to logistics companies. It is close to the airport, two motorways and rail.

“A number of long-planned transport projects have been completed in Manukau recently. A city that’s easy to get around is essential for supporting our economy and the council will continue to invest in this vital infrastructure,” Cr Collings says.

The project was a challenging one for contractors HEB Construction, with a 10 metre deep contaminated historical tip found a month before the planned road opening in November 2008. A timber-piled concrete slab was created to bridge and cap the tip material so the road could be completed.

Businesses in the area are thanked for their patience during the project.

The Saville Drive extension was funded by Manukau City Council and the New Zealand Transport Agency. Other recent major transport projects completed in Manukau include the Cavendish Drive Link, the Ormiston Road Bridge and Ormiston Road improvements.

The State Highway 20 Manukau Extension is also making good progress with the opening of a new Redoubt Road southern on-ramp and completion of new bridges on Great South Road, Wiri Station Road and Lambie Drive.