The replacement of the Millers Stream culvert under Pohutukawa Avenue will result in periodic traffic flow delays in Ōhope from the beginning of next week through until late May.

Millers Stream passes under the road just to the west of the Wealleans Petroleum service station and has caused a number of localised floods in recent years due to the inability of the culvert to cope with the stormwater flows generated by extreme rainfall events.

Whakatāne District Council Infrastructure General Manager Tomasz Krawczyk says the existing 2-metre x 1.2-metre box culvert will be replaced with a 3.5 x 1.5-metre culvert, which will almost double the flow capacity and allow the crossing to deal with a one-in-100-year flood event.

“It will also allow debris to pass through the culvert and make it less prone to blocking, while changes to the configuration of the local stormwater system will also further reduce the risk of flooding.” he says.

Physical works on the $415,000 project will begin on 19 February and are expected to take 12 weeks to complete, depending on weather conditions. Traffic management systems will be in place, and motorists are asked to exercise caution and patience while travelling through the work zone.

“In the short-term, we can expect traffic delays, and people should adjust their travel time expectations accordingly,” Mr Krawczyk concludes. “Once complete, this work will greatly improve the resilience of our stormwater system in this area and significantly reduce the likelihood of future floods impacting on nearby properties and road users.”