Major contract let for highway No. 7

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 32861, 9 March 1972, Page 10

Major contract let for highway No. 7

The Ministry of Works has let a contract for the elimination of one of the worst stretches of hill road on the State highway system in Canterbury.

The contract has been awarded to the Isaac Construction Company, Ltd, for more than $1)2,000 to realign and reconstruct 1.5 miles of State Highway No. 7 between Waikari and the old Hurunui Hotel. The resident engineer (Mr W. A. Scott) described the

section of the highway as “a very poor piece of road” which winds around Awapuni Hill known locally as Sixpenny Hill. He said the work would have been done four years ago but for the economic restrictions imposed in 1968. The contract just let is foi the worst part of the hill; the rest will be done later. The work involves cutting 45,000 cu. yds from the hillside and using the material to fill a depression further along the road. A further 18,000 cu. yds will be cut from the hill and dumped. The road foundation will be provided from 6000 cu. yds of river-run shingle and the contract will be completed with a first-coat seal. A spokesman for the contractors said the work would take about 10 months to complete. The letting of the contract has pleased the Amur! and Waipara couty councils which have pressed for years for its improvement because of the increasing importance of the road as a route to the West Coast and inland scenic areas.