Dear Western Bay of Plenty District Council,

Please find below two Official Information requests under the Local Government Official Information and Meetings Act 1987 in relation to roading repairs and resealing work on Minden Rd.

LGOIMA request 1: Minden Road resealing

As you would be aware, there continues to be significant frustration, dissatisfaction and daily inconvenience for Minden residents and road users with the resealing work currently continuing on the section of Minden Rd (from above Florence Lane to the crest above the Lookout). Many within the community are concerned that the resealing completed so far has left the road in a worse condition than before.

Can you please provide information on:
a) The Tender date, range of quotes received, and the form of project control and governance;
b) Process for consideration of road surface options and assessment of each (especially for surfacing in asphalt given it was used on the bends immediately lower to this section);
c) The original timeframes for the start and completion of the resealing work on this section of road;
d) The current estimate for the completion date for all work and the return of the road surface to operable standards;
e) Details on each decision to extend the expected completion date, the reasons for this, and how this was communicated to Minden residents & other road users on each occasion;
f) The process undertaken by Western Bay of Plenty District Council (WBOPDC) or WestLink for the awarding of the contract to the contractor (whom I believe to be ECB Group Ltd);
g) The weighting given to price and any other non-price attributes including such areas as timeliness; health & safety performance; quality and resilience of the work; community & stakeholder engagement;
h) How the Contractor ranked on each category compared to all other tenderers;
i) What are the possible penalty clauses for any failures, breaches or non-compliance contained within the contract;
j) What, if any, penalties have already been imposed on the contractor, or may be imposed for failures in relation to timeliness, quality/resilience, or safety on this project;
k) What is the expected life span for road resealing of the type currently being undertaken and other alternatives?
l) What is the WBOPDC estimated of life span of this resealing work specifically? How long will it last before further work would be scheduled?
m) The per kilometre whole of life cost as at the point of the original contract, current costs given repairs required, and costs once any penalties are imposed or payments withheld?
n) What engineering and/or quality assurance reviews and assessments have been undertaken by WBOPDC, Westlink or qualified third party on road condition and the resealing work undertaken or will be required prior to project completion and final payments made;
o) Given the safety incidents that have occurred (tanker at the Lookout toppling over & a car going over the bank lower down) and observed poor adherence to industry standards on health and safety (such as correct use of PPE, site maintenance etc), have any reports been made to Worksafe about safety incidents, and if so what dates and the outcomes of each of those notifications;
p) Given Minden Road is regularly used as an informal and/or formal alternate route or diversion if there is congestion or blockages on SH 29 and/or SH2, any communication with NZTA/Waka Kotahi about the road resealing and impact on the network;
q) What co-ordination has occurred with the Takitimu TNL or the Tauriko Alliance to consider wider network impacts;
r) It was noted that throughout the resealing work the contractor has had multiple sections of the road open at any given point. This led to adverse impacts during the Easter period as a large number of sites were open ahead of the forecast bad weather & public holidays leading to a rush to make the road driveable without traffic management over the holiday period, and then unsurprisingly the surface deteriorated from the weather and significant rework was required (which again has opened up with further potholes). Please advise whether the repair approach & decision to have multiple locations open at once was made by the contractor or the Council?

LGOIMA request 2: Underpinning Erosion at Minden Road
The ongoing maintenance and functionality of Minden Rd is important, especially as it is a key connector to the future Takitimu TNL with the interchange being constructed at the bottom of Minden Rd. As noted above it is also regularly used as an alternate route to the Kaimais & SH29 via Poripori Rd. There is a section of road on the downhill lefthand side just below the Lookout & the Junction Rd intersection where underslip and erosion has continued over the last years. Currently the farm fence posts no longer having any footing & the verge is eroding up to and into the roading surface, with risks that the left-hand lane will become impeded eventually.

Can you please provide information on:
a) Any engineering or risk assessments undertaken over the last three years;
b) Any investigations and reports on potential repair methodologies and mitigations;
c) Estimated costs for all repair options;
d) Process for decisions to be made about the preferred repair methodology and timing;
e) Any risk management plans or alternate traffic plans, (especially when the underslip increases to impact load bearing or the width of the lane).

 
Please note that given the level of frustration the road users are experiencing currently, and as other residents indicate that their phone calls and correspondence have either been unanswered or given unsatisfactory responses, I intend to share this request and any response with the local Minden community pages. We would appreciate a timely response to this request and are happy for the response to be provided in tranches (with an indication of when each could be expected).

Yours sincerely

Jacinda Lean

cc. Kaimai Ward Councillors