Early Closing
Howard Road slip
Following temporary works to stabilise the Howard Road slip site earlier this year and the completion of the design of the solution, permanent works are now being carried out. This involves the drilling of anchors into the slope and the construction of a reinforced concrete wall at the site. Works started on Monday 9 October 2023 and will take approximately six weeks (weather depending) with a week's break after the anchor installation to allow the concrete used in the process to cure.
Click on visual above to view bigger image.
Road/pedestrian impacts
During the works, there will be:
- no vehicle access from 8am-4pm on weekdays
- no pedestrian access from 9am-12pm and 12.30-3pm (i.e. pedestrians will be able to walk through the site from 12-12.30pm) on weekdays
- construction and drilling noise and vibrations.
These will affect households above 76 Howard Road and residents on Ngaumatau Road. The closure is necessary due to the narrow road not being able to accommodate works and access at the same time. It will ensure both our crew and residents are kept safe while the works are taking place.
We apologise in advance for these disruptions but are committed to getting this project completed as quickly as possible.
Alternative walking route
We recommend using the Dillon Street tracks (accessed at the Eastern Harbour Regional Park entrance next to 1a Ngaumatau Road) as these are public walking tracks which are maintained by Greater Wellington. If there are other tracks you’re aware of, you’re welcome to use these at your own discretion and if you have the approval of any landowners.
Click on visual above to view bigger image.
Wellington Water works
Wellington Water will also be carrying out works in the area to replace the water mains following our works. We'll provide further information about timing and impacts of these works once the details are confirmed.
Residents' meeting
A meeting was held for residents on Tuesday 26 September 2023 to talk through the works and road user impacts, as well as give people the opportunity to ask questions. These handouts were provided at the meeting:
More information
Check out our frequently asked questions for further details.
There are vehicle restrictions in place with a maximum vehicle weight of 3.5 tonnes and maximum width of 2.5 metres. Trailers can be towed provided they're also under 2.5m wide and that the total weight of the vehicle/trailer does not exceed 3.5 tonnes.
Only lightweight vehicles such as cars, vans, utes, SUVs and 4WDs are able to access the road above the slip site.
All vehicles must be driven past the slip site at a maximum of 10km/h and utes, SUVs and 4WDs cannot carry additional heavy loads.
For residents above the slip site, there are large 660L bins located outside 59 Howard Rd for shared use that are collected twice each week as follows:
- Rubbish: Mondays and Fridays
- Recycling: Tuesdays and Fridays.
These bins are not for use by the wider public. We ask people to please be understanding that residents impacted by the slip need this service.
Residents should continue to bring their blue crates for glass recycling to the collection point on their usual fortnightly collection day.
Wellington Water and Hutt City Council released a joint review on the Howard Road slip in late-March 2023. The review examined what happened in the weeks and months leading up to the slip and found that:
- residents provided accurate and timely information about the status of the leak at Point Howard
- the engineering report, that provided an initial geotechnical assessment of the site after the slip, considered that the landslide likely resulted from a combination of a leaking water pipe and rainfall at the time
- there was an inconsistency in the flow of customer information between Wellington Water and Hutt City Council which impeded the timely escalation and prioritisation of the leak repair.
The review also made recommendations which both organisations are committed to implementing.
The review can be found by clicking on this link.
A large slip occurred on 14 March 2023 on Howard Road, Point Howard, resulting in 165 houses losing access to power, water and gas. The road was closed and the HCC Emergency Operations Centre was stood up to deal with the response.
Power and gas services were quickly restored and the road was opened (but down to one lane past the slip site) once emergency response works were carried out.