Marlborough can “accelerate” its road to recovery with the announcement that NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) will fund the repair stage of the Phase Three of the Sounds recovery roading programme.

“This is the most welcome and excellent news. This is the confirmation we needed to accelerate work on the road repairs required,” Mayor Nadine Taylor said.

The NZTA Board has approved funding for Phase Three repair works for the five Sounds zones at a Funding Assistance Rate (FAR) of 71 per cent. The work is estimated to cost $141.4M meaning NZTA will contribute $100.4M. This is in addition to the approximately $130M already allocated in Phases One and Two. The funding will be used to address more than 1,500 outstanding faults that remain on the local road network that need repairs.

“Our priority is to get the Kenepuru Road open to a state where we have full public access and we can also allow trucks through. We know the Kenepuru community has been waiting for a long time for this certainty. Because of the cost of the repairs, we needed the NZTA funding confirmed to proceed with confidence to get the work done and let residents and businesses in the area to get back to normal,” said Mayor Taylor.

NZTA have also confirmed regarding future transport improvement funding that the business case phase for this will be considered in the current 2024-27 National Land Transport Programme (NLTP). NZTA Regional Manager – Lower North Island/Top of the South Mark Owen said in December 2023 the NZTA Board indicated its willingness to also fund 51 per cent of Road Improvements subject to further detailed design work. “Funding for road improvements will be subject to further Board decisions and business case processes over the coming National Land Transport Programme (NLTP) period,” Mr Owen said.

Mayor Taylor said Council would continue to work with NZTA to confirm the appropriate business case approach for the road improvements and the expected timeline for that work.

“Of course, we hoped for approval for the entire Programme Business Case for the Sounds roads but if we have a little bit further to travel to secure the remaining funds required for road improvements, then that is what we will do on behalf of our affected communities.”

“The Marlborough Sounds Future Access Study (MSFAS) has been a long and complex piece of work for Council. Many in the Marlborough Sounds have been living with broken roads, uncertainty and challenging connections for three years. We now have a big part of the answer our Sounds communities have been waiting and hoping for – to them I say, you have been patient and your patience has been rewarded,” Mayor Taylor said.

“This is not only about roads – it is about real people who are at the heart of Marlborough’s largest recovery project. I hope today’s decision brings some comfort to those affected that we can now proceed with confidence to repair these roads,” she said.

Council Chief Executive John Boswell said the work required to complete the Marlborough Sounds Future Access Study (MSFAS) was immense.

Council embarked on the MSFAS in November 2022 to identify options and the associated costs of safe and resilient long-term access solutions for the Sounds, both for Council and to support a Programme Business Case (PBC) for funding assistance as required by NZTA. It took 10 months to complete with the final PBC submitted to NZTA for consideration in October 2023.

“I want to acknowledge all those involved in the consultation – our communities, our ratepayers, our councillors, staff across Council who have worked on this and Stantec who led the development of the MSFAS. This announcement is a great leap forward but clearly there is still work to be done and Council will undertake to do that,” Mr Boswell said.

© Scoop Media