Dam highway’s cost

Press, 22 October 1983, Page 16

Dam highway’s cost

Sir,—On page 29 of “The Press” on October 18 was a report that the cost of building the 22km road bypassing the Clyde reservoir had almost doubled to SSOM and may go higher. This represents $2.27M per km or $2272 per metre. A 41 per cent increase in cost is attributed to inflation although much of the period since the initial estimates has been in a price-wage freeze. The remaining increase is apparently due to the presence of unexpected “pockets of loess” and “ground faults,” aggravated by the fact that parts of the highway foundations will be below lake level. The difficulties are classed as “unexpected geological problems.” Unexpected by whom? How much, as a percentage of total costs, was spent on geological and geotechnical investigations before the final route was determined and estimates made? Is there a better route? The final sentence implies there is. — Yours, etc., J. D. BRADSHAW, Reader in Geology, University of Canterbury. October 20, 1983.