Make Sure Your Spring Clean Doesn’t End in a Spring Flood!

Franklin District Council is reminding residents that roadside open drains need to remain clear of vegetation and rubbish or roads will flood in heavy rain.


Wet flooded roads are much more dangerous then you may realise. Last year wet roads and bad weather were the main factor in almost 10% of serious crashes in the Franklin District. So keeping roadside drains working is vitally important to road safety!


During spring when residents, especially in rural areas, get stuck into trimming and pruning it is easy for drains to end up full of unwanted vegetation.


“The roadside open drains are there to collect rain and channel it away from the roads. If these get blocked, even with natural vegetation, they can’t function and the roads quickly cover in water,” says Franklin District Council’s Land Transport Manager, Dawn Inglis.


Franklin District Council also reminds residents that although Council maintain and clear the roadside open drains throughout the District, maintaining culverts (i.e. the part of the drain under a driveway) is the responsibility of the landowners.


“Everyone needs to work together to keep the drains and culverts clear. It’s no good Council clearing the drain if the culvert is blocked. Its also not productive use of ratepayer’s money for us to clear the drains if pruned branches quickly fill it up again,” says Dawn.





Ends