Hot Weather Delays Repair Work on Punt Hill

Contractors for Franklin District Council have confirmed that the summer sun is doing damage - and we aren’t talking about dried out paddocks. Repair work that is needed on Punt Hill, Tuakau-Onewhero Road, has been delayed because the road surface is simply too hot to enable repairs.


The road was sealed in November 2007 and is taking longer than would be normally expected to settle down. The result is that chip is not sticking to the road. The bitumen, the ‘glue’ which holds down the chip, is also not hardening.


Unfortunately the road temperature is around 60 degrees which is hampering efforts to repair the road. Contractors have attempted to cool down the road using water spray; however the water evaporates as soon as it hits the road surface.


“The contractors have confirmed to Council that they are committed to fixing the road, at their own cost, once the temperature makes it possible,” says Franklin District Council’s Land Transport Manager, Dawn Inglis.


The contractors involved will continue to ensure the road is maintained to a safe level until repair work can occur. This includes renewing road markings, re-chipping to prevent exposing too much bitumen and having temporary speed restrictions in place.


In the meantime Council thanks the community for their patience.