Weather delays work around Cathedral Square

13 May 2004

Work planned to replace Cathedral Square roadway pavers with asphalt during the last week has been delayed due to continuing wet weather.

The granite pavers in the road are being replaced with asphalt to improve safety.
The work was to start on the stretch north of the Cathedral, from the intersection between The Press and the Heritage to the Colombo-Gloucester intersection, but inclement weather has stopped the second of two layers of asphalt being completed.

Roads due for closure in that sector of the Square are now temporarily open, but the Council is recommending that people try to avoid these sections as there are still manhole covers sticking up and the surface of the northern intersection of Worcester Street remains uneven.

Appropriate traffic controls and signage are in place and buses will continue to go around the Square until the work is done. The remaining work will be completed as soon as the weather allows.

The contractor is City Care.

Background: At its December 2002 meeting the City Council considered a report on the Square which said work was needed on the road surface. It said there were two issues with the road’s existing granite surfacing -- the pavers’ slipperiness when wet and the ongoing maintenance costs and structural failure of the road surface.
The Council voted to replace the granite pavers on all carriageways with asphalt and to have the work done progressively to match repair needs and the pavement-renewal budget.
The first part of this work was carried out in May, 2003. Concrete pavers would be considered on those parts of the carriageways “where indicated for aesthetic design purposes and where traffic conditions permit”.
The Council also instructed staff to recycle any undamaged pavers to be used when work is done on the Square’s north-west quadrant.
The full report from that December 2004 meeting and the decisions can be found at  web site www.ccc.govt.nz/Council/Proceedings/2002/December/StrategyFinance/CathedralSquare.pdf <http://www.ccc.govt.nz/Council/Proceedings/2002/December/StrategyFinance/CathedralSquare.pdf>

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