Upokongaro cycle bridge opening confirmed

Published on 22 October 2020

Whanganui District Council has announced the Upokongaro cycle bridge will open to the public in the first week of December.

It will be open in time for the summer holiday season and is expected to be a popular attraction for visitors to the district, particularly those riding the Mountains to Sea cycleway which begins in Ohakune and continues through National Park to Whanganui, ending at Castlecliff’s North Mole.

The bridge was launched pre the COVID-19 national emergency declaration as New Zealand headed into lockdown in March 2020. This was to take advantage of a window of favourable weather and river conditions and to avoid leaving the bridge unsecured during the lockdown. 

Whanganui District Council Chief Executive Kym Fell says, “Emmetts Civil Construction is in the final stages of preparing documentation for the formal contract completion.

“We look forward to involving Upokongaro School, businesses and residents in plans for the formal opening of the bridge.”  

Meanwhile, Mr Fell says the council has learned from the process, particularly the importance of working in a collaborative way with communities under the Te Awa Tupua Act legislation.

“It wasn’t until we applied for a variation to our resource consent with Horizons Regional Council in 2018 that we realised the riverbed, over which the bridge is placed, is vested in Te Awa Tupua,” he says.

“In the end, we needed to take a step back and follow the correct process to get an easement from Te Pou Tupua, the legal face of Te Awa Tupua.” 

The council has engaged with local hapū Ngā Paerangi, Ngā Tāngata Tiaki o Whanganui and the Upokongaro community in discussions about the bridge.

“I think it is important to confirm that no payment was made to either party to secure agreement for the easement. In fact, the hapū and Te Pou Tupua have been understanding of the situation while we worked to back-fill the easement situation,” says Mr Fell.

He says, “We also made use of the time during the COVID-19 lockdown to work through a number of matters, including additional safety and environmental considerations,” he says, “and in the process I believe we have built stronger foundations with the community.  

“People will be enjoying this asset all summer and beyond, and we thank the community for its patience.”

Project background

The Upokongaro Cycle Bridge was proposed in 2017, as a purpose-built cycle and pedestrian bridge from the small Whanganui River settlement of Upokongaro to Whanganui city, continuing to the city’s 50 km/h limit on the Aramoho side of the river.

The current projected cost of the bridge and continuation of the cycle path is approximately $3.4 million, with 50% of funding provided by the New Zealand Transport Agency. The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment will fund $600,000 toward the project and Whanganui District Council will provide the remaining funds.

Emmetts Civil Construction was awarded the contract to design and build the walkway, using B. Bullocks for the earthworks and off-road cycleway construction. Holmes Consulting designed the bridge.

Engeo and Geotech Drilling undertook geotechnical work on the bridge site in late 2017.

Construction commenced in mid-2018. A variation to the Horizons Resource Consent was requested in July 2018, to enable the abutments to be built higher than originally detailed.

Raising the bridge 800 millimetres above the minimum requirements has provided an additional measure of flood protection, reducing risks to the structure from climate change effects.

Changing the height of the bridge was not related to clearance for the Waimarie Paddle Steamer, which would have been able to pass comfortably under the original bridge design.

A community meeting was held with the Upokongaro community on 30 July, 2020, attended by Whanganui District Council Mayor, Hamish McDouall, Chief Executive, Kym Fell and council officers.

Approximately 60-70 members of the community attended and questions covered a number of subjects ranging from the State Highway through to questions on the bridge, public toilets and the nearby Upokongaro Hall.

The community meeting was timed to coincide with public consultation on the future of the hall and the need for a public toilet at Upokongaro. Feedback was invited over a two-month period and included a survey which was available in hardcopy and online.

Whanganui District Council received 181 responses to the survey, demonstrating a high level of community interest.

The results were presented to the Whanganui District Council Property and Community Services Committee held on Tuesday, 22 September.