Photo: Supplied by NZTA
Transporting NZ 'disappointed' over Desert Road closure
Transporting NZ says it is extremely disappointed to hear the Desert Road will close for two months over summer.
From 6 January until the end of February it will be closed between Tūrangi and Waiouru for repairs.
This include rebuilding nearly 16 kilometres of road and replacing the deck of the Mangatoetoenui Bridge.
The trucking industry lobby group says it was told about the closure on 4 November but it did not know the exact dates.
Transporting NZ chief executive Dom Kalasih said it was short term pain for long term gain.
But he said some operators say the closure would add an additional 90 minutes to trips. For others it would be a lot less depending on the destination.
A 30 minute addition to most journeys would equate to $6 million in direct costs over the two months, Kalasih said.
"But for us, probably what's more worrying is it equates to about 400 hours of lost productivity per day."
It would be like trying to find another 70 drivers to make up for the loss "and that's going to be significant", he said.
Kalasih said he wasn't sure NZTA considered every sort of alternative.
There would be a detour which Kalasih said was one of the worst sections of road in the whole highway network.
"It's two levels of risk higher than the Desert Road.
"So drivers are going to need to take extra care."
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