Rimutaka Hill - Safer than ever
The Rimutaka Hill Road is a challenging but crucial lifeline between Wellington and the Wairarapa. The hill is notorious for road crashes, prompting the New Zealand Transport Agency (NZTA) to focus on the upgrade and improvement of various sections of the hill in recent years. A number of sharp corners have recently been eased to improve visibility for motorists and there has also been the installation of additional road barrier.
“There were a number of sections of the road that had a gap in the barrier which the NZTA wanted closed up to make the road that much safer,” says Jeremy Mallender, Sales Engineer - Lower North Island for CSP.
“Closing up the gaps in the barrier wouldn’t normally be an issue, but in a couple of places there is a very steep drop off requiring a bit more than just the road barrier,” said Len Woodman, Manager for N & R Askew, the civil construction company appointed to install the barrier.
Len came up with a solution that involved using Nu-Guard 31™ steel posts to create low timber retaining walls - up to 450mm in height. A lime basecourse was then compacted in front of the retaining wall creating a stable platform on which CSP’s Nu-Guard 31™ Steel Guardrail System could be installed.
The Nu-Guard 31™ Steel posts are slim and perfect for creating the retaining walls at this location as they create very little soil disturbance when installed.
“This is a practical solution to provide founding for the guardrail given the topographical constraints of the Rimutaka Hill,” said Joe Southey, Project Engineer for MWH Global. “Everything went well as it always does when dealing with CSP,” adds Len. “I have used them for many years and they are extremely good to work with and they offer great support and back up.” |
The combination of retaining walls and CSP’s Nu-Guard 31™ Steel Guardrail System have meant that the latest round of safety improvements to Rimutaka Hill have made it safer than ever.