Mt Barker residents were “completely delighted” to see Fulton Hogan machinery arriving on Ballantyne Road last Thursday after years of community lobbying for safety improvements.

Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) General Manager Property and Infrastructure Peter Hansby said he was thrilled to break ground on the $6.4m upgrade.

“The work will address a number of safety issues such as inconsistent surfacing, limited driver sight lines, a lack of road markings and narrow roadways. Getting started on this important upgrade is a big milestone and a fantastic outcome for the Wānaka community,” he said. 

The upgrade project will feature a number of improvements, including: the sealing of 4km of unsealed road and clear zone on both sides, significantly reducing the risk of crashes in the area; a low speed environment by design; one metre wide sealed shoulders to allow safer opportunities for walking and cycling; improved drainage and the relocation of 40 power poles.

Former Mt Barker Residents Association secretary Chrissie Thomson said it was “amazing to see” progress eventuating after battling to get the road upgraded for “at least twelve years.”

“It is such a dangerous road with the changes from seal to gravel and back again,” she said, “and of course this is made worse by the narrow width of it, the blind rises and the dust visibility issue. There have been numerous recorded and unrecorded accidents as well as - sadly - one death on this road.”

In October 2016, seventeen-year-old Jackson James (JJ) Aitchison, 17, was killed when his car hit a tree. 

Resident John Coers, who had seen two cars turned upside down in front of his property, added that dust ingestion had also affected his livestock and resulted in some of their deaths. He said that when he purchased and subdivided the property 14 years ago, he had paid a development contribution to QLDC and had been informed the road would be sealed within two years. But, since then, he had repeatedly been told by Council that there were no funds available to carry out the work.

Funding for the project - which was announced in May 2019 - is to be split 50:50 between QLDC and Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency.

Ballantyne Road will be closed to through traffic for approximately six months while the work is carried out, with a detour in place via Riverbank Road and SH6.

“We know this work may be inconvenient for some and we’re grateful for the community’s patience while this important safety upgrade is completed,” said Hansby.

Read edition 1004 of the Wānaka Sun here.