The realignment will pass over the top of the gorge, avoiding the existing narrow, sharp twists and turns of the existing route. The $30m New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) project was advanced last year by the government's Jobs and Growth stimulus package and has provided a significant economic boost to the region by using local contractors and suppliers, including concrete supply by Firth Napier, for this very unique project.

"Concrete Structures NZ Ltd are our customer on this project with Downer being the main contractor," says Lester Wagner, Manager, Hawkes Bay for Firth. "We started supply at the beginning of the year for the new viaduct and have been steadily supplying onsite and pre-cast concrete to the project."

With the northern wing of the bridge complete and the southern side almost finished, Dave Fraser, Napier Plant Manager for Firth explains, "Concrete Structures Ltd have a very large 450-tonne crane on site to lift the middle section of the bridge into place to join up the northern and southern wings of the bridge. Once this has been installed we will be back in November to complete the concrete overlay on the bridge itself. Everything has gone very smoothly."
"Once the middle section of the bridge has been lowered in to place, the pre-cast concrete deck sections, which will be manufactured in our Hastings plant, will be laid on top, then the reinforcing steel placed and the in situ deck poured," says John Pohlen, Project Manager for Concrete Structures Ltd.
"Firth has been fantastic as always. There have been absolutely no issues or problems, they do a great job for us." Along with construction of the new bridge the existing route through the Matahorua Gorge has been shortened from 4.5km to 3.1km by easing the sharp twists and turns, providing a straighter, shorter journey that will be safer, easier and more reliable for motorists. With progress on the bridge moving along steadily the realignment should be completed by early 2011.