ISSUE
Friday, August 15, 2025
Volume 16 . Issue 72
In what came as a major relief to the earthquake-hit touristic town of Kaikoura, the State Highway Route 70 or the Inland Kaikoura Road (from Waiau to Kaikoura) is now open to two-way 24/7 unrestricted traffic. Announcing this on Monday, NZTA Canterbury also cautioned the drivers to allow extra travel time due to road works.
This is the first time since the November 14 7.8 earthquake that people will have unrestricted access to the town famous for its whale-watching industry. Transport Minister Simon Bridges praised the crews for their relentless work over the past five weeks including “clearing the road of more than 50 slips, stabilising slopes, repairing damage and building an entirely new diversion road around the highly unstable Whalesback section of route 70.”
Newly-sworn Prime Minister Bill English, who made his maiden trip to Kaikoura on December 15, also announced his commitment to rebuilding State Highway 1 and the rail connections both north and south of Kaikoura. “This is expected to cost between $1.4 billion and $2 billion and take around 12 months to complete,” he informed.
Also, to put the town's tourism and fishery operators back up and running, the Central Government has committed $5 million for dredging of the Kaikoura Harbour, which right now has restricted access due to the rising of the seabed by one to two metres.
In what came as a major relief to the earthquake-hit touristic town of Kaikoura, the State Highway Route 70 or the Inland Kaikoura Road (from Waiau to Kaikoura) is now open to two-way 24/7 unrestricted traffic. Announcing this on Monday, NZTA Canterbury also cautioned the drivers to allow extra...
In what came as a major relief to the earthquake-hit touristic town of Kaikoura, the State Highway Route 70 or the Inland Kaikoura Road (from Waiau to Kaikoura) is now open to two-way 24/7 unrestricted traffic. Announcing this on Monday, NZTA Canterbury also cautioned the drivers to allow extra travel time due to road works.
This is the first time since the November 14 7.8 earthquake that people will have unrestricted access to the town famous for its whale-watching industry. Transport Minister Simon Bridges praised the crews for their relentless work over the past five weeks including “clearing the road of more than 50 slips, stabilising slopes, repairing damage and building an entirely new diversion road around the highly unstable Whalesback section of route 70.”
Newly-sworn Prime Minister Bill English, who made his maiden trip to Kaikoura on December 15, also announced his commitment to rebuilding State Highway 1 and the rail connections both north and south of Kaikoura. “This is expected to cost between $1.4 billion and $2 billion and take around 12 months to complete,” he informed.
Also, to put the town's tourism and fishery operators back up and running, the Central Government has committed $5 million for dredging of the Kaikoura Harbour, which right now has restricted access due to the rising of the seabed by one to two metres.
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