HUTT RD. WIDENING

Evening Post, Volume CXXXVIII, Issue 81, 3 October 1944, Page 7

HUTT RD. WIDENING

NECESSARY IN FUTURE

SIX LANES ULTIMATELY

The widening of the Hutt RoaoLfrom its present four lanes to . six lanes would ultimately be necessary, though not for ■ some considerable time, said Mr. F. Langbein, highways engineer, Main Highways Board, in a statement to the Hutt Harbour Commission yesterday. ; First improvements would be needed on the city-Ngahauranga section and in the elimination of the Petone level crossing. • T

Tallies taken in 1939, he said, showed that the peak traffic was only about one-half of the normal working capacity of the road, and the outer section, he considered, would not require widening until the population of the Valley and the eastern bays was at least 200,000. '

The section from Ngahauranga■ to Wellington was not divided over'its full length. It had to accommodate traffic from the Ngahauranga Gorge as well as that from Petone, and also from Onslow Road and Kaiwarra Gorge. For those reasons it would be necessary to make additional provision on that section, or, at least, to the 3 portion north of the Thorndon overbridge, some time before the conversion of the outer section to six lanes.

Various factors had to be taken into account, said Mr. Langbein. The rate of increase in population in b6th the Hutt Valley and in the Tawa FlatPorirua district was likely to .be very much faster than what might have been forecast from a study! of past rates of increase because of the prospective housing developments, but it might prove erroneous to forecast that traffic would increase in proportion tp population; nor was it certain that petrol would be uncontrolled after the war. The Railways Department was carrying most of the passenger traffic today; whether they would be able to j retain it after the.war would denend upon how quickly they were able to improve the service by electrification. As the Hutt Velley increased in size it would become more self-contained and less reliant upon Wellington; The construction of a harbour at Hutt would, not, in his opinion, hav.e any influence upon the date when it would be necessary to widen the Hutt Road. ENGINEERING ASPECTS. . No detailed survey had been made for the widening of the Hutt Road to six lanes, said Mr. Langbein, but he had-recently made a walk-over inspecti on with ■ a view of deciding the best means of effecting; the widening. The country on the west side, of the road was such that it would hot be possible to make provision for the additional width entirely on the land side. This,--would mean that the railway would have to.be placed further seaward also in such places'; The elimination of the. railway f-cfbssing at Petone would.appear to'vbe best effected by deviating the^rgilway eastwards and locating .th^', r .'<:rossing ten or fifteen chains sou% of its present location. On.; the Ngahaurariga-Wellingtpn section the complete remodelling of the for the Main Trunk line would sbejcnecessary. . ■•T^When widening for either railway or •highway purposes came under consideration it would be essential fora proposal to be adopted that tyouid suit the ultimate needs of both railway and highway.

Replying to Mr. J. Wood with reference to a point made by a" previous witness that grade separation would be advisable at the junction of the Hutt and Ngahauranga Gorge Roads, Mr. Langbem expressed his agreement.