Mayor Neil Brown doesn’t know how to explain it any better - Ashburton's second bridge project is not a State Highway 1 bypass.

It’s a misconception that constantly comes up, including at the project's community drop-in information session on September 11.

“Plenty of people called in to get explanations and answers to all their questions,” Brown said.

That included a few around the bridge being a SH1 bypass.

“Despite all the messaging, describing, and publicising that it's not a bypass, people are still thinking it’s a bypass.

“For some reason, it isn’t getting through.

“I guess we’ll just have to build it and prove it.”

Construction of the new bridge is due to start next year, and once finished it will provide an alternative route across the Ashburton/Hakatere River.

NZTA regional relationships director James Caygill said he was pleased with the number of people who came to the drop-in session, and there were “very few people” with questions around the new bridge being a SH1 bypass.

“Many people understood that the new bridge provides resilience to the state highway in the event the SH1 bridge is closed.

“People we talked to largely understood that the primary benefit of the project is for local traffic and community connectivity.”

One of those taking the opportunity to review the plans on September 11 was Tinwald resident Steve Murray, who has personal reasons for his bridge enthusiasm.

When it was closed during the flooding in 2021, he'd broken his ankle after slipping over and needed to get to the hospital.

The closed bridge was only opened for a few hours each day, and he said the queues were massive, resulting in him being turned back when it was closed, taking three days to get to the hospital after breaking his ankle.

Murray said he likes the new bridge plans and was happy the Government increased its funding for the project, considering its significance.

Those connected with Mania-O-Roto Scouts, whose den is on the banks of the river at the end of Chalmers Ave, had concerns about road safety and access to express to the NZTA staff.

Lori Rusbatch was worried about vehicles safely entering and exiting the den into traffic, and also about children walking and biking on the roadside.

After talking to NZTA staff, she said her fears were allayed.

The second bridge project information display is at Te Kete Tuhinga, Ashburton library, until the end of next week.

Key facts

The new bridge will…

- reduce local traffic on SH1, freeing up SH1 for out-of-town traffic and freight

- provide an alternative route for roadworks or an incident on SH1

- be 15m wide (the SH1 bridge is 8.5m wide) and 360m long

- have two traffic lanes, two cycle lanes, and a 3.2m wide shared pathway

The new connecting road..

- is around 1.3km long, from Carters Terrace to Grahams Road.

- have sealed shoulders for cyclists and an unsealed shared path on the northwest side

- have a new roundabout at Grahams Road and new give way intersections at Johnstone Street, Wilkins Road, Carters Terrace.

By Jonathan Leask