Flooding in the Ashburton River forced the closure of the SH1 bridge in July 2023. Photo: Ashburton District Council
Ashburton's long awaited second bridge is closer than ever, with the government's announcement it will fund 100 percent of the cost of the bridge while the council picks up the tab for the connecting road.
The bridge, which successive councils have been campaigning for almost two decades, will run across the Ashburton River from Chalmers Avenue to Carters Terrace.
Neither the government or the council will put a dollar figure on their respective bills, but the most recent estimate was for about $130m, with NZTA funding at least 51 percent ($66m).
However, the new arrangement will see the NZTA meet the full cost of the bridge.
Flooding in 2021 saw the South Island supply chain almost severed after damage caused the closure of the SH1 bridge, with the only alternative involving a 13-hour diversion.
The bridge was forced to close again in 2023 following severe weather, flooding and a build up of debris.
Mayor Neil Brown said he was delighted with the new arrangement, and felt the council would get "the better end of the deal" paying for the new connecting road on the Tinwald side of the bridge.
While some in the community objected to the location of the second bridge in a largely residential area, Brown said final location at the end of Chalmers Avenue had already been consulted on, and council had put a designation on the land around a decade ago.
He said planning for the bridge goes back even further, to around 2006, when the town's transportation study identified the need for a second bridge.
The existing bridge as more than 21,000 vehicles on a weekday, peaking at 30,000 vehicles per day on weekends.
The mayor said he had a committment from Transport Minister Simeon Brown that the bridge will not be tolled.
"Through our negotiations with the minister, he said the bridge won't be tolled, and I'll take the minister at his word."
Simeon Brown said construction on the bridge, which is one of the 149 projects included in the government's Fast Track Approvals Bill, is expected to begin in 2026.
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