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No major works are in progress in the Nelson district, but some short lengths of sealing and 8 miles of resealing have been carried out. A 2j-mile length of the Picton-Christchurch Highway near Spring Creek is being reconditioned in preparation for sealing. On the Richmond-Collingwood Highway the erection of the Jubilee Bridge, near Motueka, has been commenced, and the new Coal Creek Bridge on the Westport Highway has been brought into use by the completion of the approach deviation. A considerable amount of bridge repairs and flood-damage restoration have been carried out. On the West Coast the excessive rainfall reported last year continued well into the period under review and was the cause of considerable damage. A major slip at Inangahua required a permanent 8-chain deviation. Construction work included the Cave Creek Bridge and a retaining-wall on the Nelson-Westport Highway, flood-protection works, and the erection of two surfacemen's cottages. Five and a half miles of new and miles of maintenance sealing were applied. In the Canterbury districts the bridge over the Deadman Creek on the PictonChristchurch Highway was put in hand by contract and has now been completed, and the Weka Creek Bridge commenced. The Aniseed Stream Bridge has also been completed. The Kaiapoi Bridge has been completed and opened to traffic, the sealing of the approaches remaining to be done. On the Christchurch-Timaru Highway, 4| miles between Rolleston and Burnham and 3f miles between Winchester and Temuka received a plant-mix maintenance coat. One and a half -miles of similar work was carried out between Sumner and Lyttelton. Reconstruction and sealing through Winchester Borough were completed. The Broad Gully Culvert, north of the Waitaki River, has been completed. The Rakaia Gorge Bridge, on the Darfield-Arundel Highway, is nearly completed. In three Canterbury districts 28f miles of maintenance surfacing was carried out. In Otago a contract has been let for an 85 ft. concrete bridge at Omarama, on the Timaru-Cromwell Highway, and for the Queens Flat Bridge, on the Waiareka-Duntroon Highway. The approaches to the latter have been completed. A short concrete bridge was erected over Lug Creek near Middlemarch, and also one of 40 ft. span over the Sludge Channel at St. Bathan's. Thirteen miles of resealing was undertaken in the two Otago districts. In the Southland district improvements comprise the widening to two-lane width of the Charlton Creek Bridge, on the Gore-Invercargill Highway, and the replacement of a narrow bridge at Waimatuku with a modern concrete structure. On the Queenstown-Invercargill Highway the approaches to the four new bridges and some corner improvements were carried out over a length of 1 mile 56 chains. The 60 ft. Camp Creek Bridge, on the Riverton-Tuatapere Highway, is in progress, and the approaches, \ mile in length, are 50 per cent, complete. Throughout the district, 12f miles of resealing has been effected and a considerable amount of metalling of worn-out gravel surfaces is in hand. Visit of Inspection to the South Island and Contact with Local Bodies and Automobile Associations. —As mentioned in last year's report, the Board made its first tour of inspection since the commencement of the war in Europe, in February-March 1945, and visited the northern portion of the North Island. During the latter part of January and early February, 1946, the southern portion of the South Island was inspected, and the northern part of the South Island was visited towards the end of April. These visits are particularly necessary now with a view to fixing programmes of operations during the years ahead. Opportunity was taken to inspect several schemes for future

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