Environmental success for Cape Reinga project
June 2011
The NZTA and its partners have been awarded a premier environmental award for the project to seal and improve the very last 19 kilometres of State Highway 1, from Waitiki Landing to Cape Reinga in Northland.
The project was selected ahead of 10 other finalists to win the Arthur Mead Environment and Sustainability Award presented by the Institution of Professional Engineers New Zealand (IPENZ). The judges say they were impressed by the project's commitment to involve the far north community in all phases of the project, adding that the improvements made to the highway demonstrated a clear understanding of the need to enhance and protect the environment.
Cape Reinga and the surrounding area is a place of historical and spiritual significance to Maori, and is one of the country's most popular tourist destinations with its isolated lighthouse overlooking turbulent waters where the Pacific Ocean and Tasman Sea meet.
The NZTA submission was called Healing Te Rerenga Wairua – Cape Reinga Upgrade Project. The State Highway's Manager for Northland, Tommy Parker, says the IPENZ award follows a successful team effort involving the NZTA, its project consultants AECOM, Northland-based contractors United Civil, local iwi – Ngati Kuri and Te Aupouri – and the Department of Conservation. NZTA project managers during the three year-long upgrade were Howard Marshall, Rachel Kirk, Marcus Lin, Phil Sutton and Martin Leak.
"This was an extremely sensitive project, and anyone who's travelled on this much improved section of SH1 will appreciate that the award is fitting reward and recognition for what is a fantastic legacy partnership providing enduring benefits for the region," says Tommy.
The improvements include sealing and widening the highway, smoothing out tight curves to give drivers, cyclists and walkers clear and safer visibility. The project created jobs for the local community. Iwi propagated about 500,000 native plants to beautify the final leg of the journey to the Cape and help stabilise land. Environmentally friendly Information sites have been located alongside the highway, and the Cape Reinga visitor centre has been upgraded.
Now, for the first time, the entire length of SH1 from Cape Reinga to Bluff is a sealed highway - all 2022 dust-free kilometres of it.
Tauranga Harbour Link wins Roading Excellence awards
October 2010
Tauranga Harbour Link Stage 2 project won its category (the Greenstone Energy Excellence Award for a Major Road Project) - and then went on to take the supreme award at the recent Roading New Zealand Awards.
Judges said Harbour Link, a partnership involving the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA), Beca and Fletcher Construction, was executed excellently, coming in under budget and three months ahead of schedule. They noted it stood out due to the attention to detail in its planning, the way risks were identified and managed and the precision of the operation.
Rod James, the NZTA's Bay of Plenty State Highway Manager says the partnering approach championed by Harbour Link, the innovation and the quality of the final product really has set new standards across New Zealand's roading industry. It's this standard that the local NZTA team and partners will strive to achieve on other projects in our region.
Harbour Link has also been recognised with awards for its public relations, health and safety practices, industry-leading use of concrete, and business sustainability.
Roading New Zealand's Roading Excellence Awards aim to promote leadership, excellence and best practice in the provision of land transport infrastructure. Entry is open to all organisations involved in roading projects carried out in New Zealand.
NZTA website wins plain English award
September 2010
The NZ Transport Agency was recognised at the Plain English Awards on 3 September where the agency's website won an award in the People's Choice Best Plain English Website category.
All entrants into this category were nominated by a member of the public. This Plain English Award is recognition for how the NZTA is continuing to improve customer service across the organisation.
The member of the public who nominated the NZTA said, "I went online to sort out something for my car and found the website easy to use. It had the right amount of information without dumbing down."
This is the third year the NZTA has received recognition for plain English use. The NZTA won an award in 2008 with Best Plain English Project for the Feet First Walk to School campaign and in 2007 with Best Plain English Website for Land Transport NZ (also voted for by the public).
KiwiRAP racks up awards
June 2010
Colin Brodie and Mike Noon accepted the award on behalf of the NZTA and the NZ Automobile Association.
The KiwiRAP Star Ratings model, launched in June this year, was awarded the Trafinz Road Safety Leadership Award at this year's Conference.
International recognition
The KiwiRAP programme also received international recognition at iRAP Asia-Pacific workshop in Cambodia during September 2010 – winning the Star Performer award.
High praise was given from iRAP on the programme – a great endorsement for the work that NZTA is doing in New Zealand.
For more about that, read the December issue of Pathways when it comes out later this month. In the meantime view details at: http://irap.org/3rd-annual-asia-pacific-workshop.aspx.
- View Colin's presentation on KiwiRAP (PDF, 3.58MB)
Northern Gateway Toll Road takes out top roading award
November 2009
The Northern Gateway Toll Road has scooped another big award, winning top honours at the 2009 Roading Excellence Awards.
The project, which the NZTA opened in January 2009 and is New Zealand's largest completed roading project, won the Shell Bitumen Excellence Award for a Major Road Project and took out the Roading New Zealand Supreme Award.
The $365 million toll road, built by the Northern Gateway Alliance, passed through historically rich and diverse landscapes, steep topography and local streams, which made it one of New Zealand's most challenging roading projects. The road was designed to create a visual showcase of environmental and engineering excellence.
Roading New Zealand chief executive Chris Olsen says the awards judges considered the Northern Gateway Toll Road to be an excellent example of a project that was meticulously planned and executed under a truly collaborative model.
'It is a testament to NZTA's courage to embark on major and high-risk projects using this form of contractual arrangement,' Mr Olsen said, and it also demonstrates the New Zealand contracting industry's ability to deliver these complex projects very successfully.
'As New Zealand embarks on a round of major roading infrastructure projects, it is very heartwarming to see the industry delivering such high calibre work. It augurs well for the future of the country's highway network.'
The NZTA's SH60 Eureka Bend Reinstatement also triumphed, winning the Goughs Excellence Award for a Minor Road Project.
The highway is the only road access to the Golden Bay and the project was undertaken after a major slip in 2006 cut off the area.
The Roading Excellence Awards are sponsored by Roading New Zealand and recognise excellence in the planning, design and construction of significant roading projects, as well as the development and implementation of best practice and collaboration in the roading industry.
