Full Lake Terrace closure in July cancelled

Taupō District Council and developers Kokomea Village Limited have worked together to avoid a two-week closure of a section of Lake Terrace next month.

Developers originally proposed to close a stretch of road between Maunganamu Drive and Rainbow Drive for two weeks to allow a pedestrian underpass between Ngā Roto Estate and the lakefront to be safely installed and a roundabout completed.

Following the closure being notified, some residents of Wharewaka and Ngā Roto Estate contacted Mayor David Trewavas and councillors expressing their concern at the lengthy detour along the East Taupō Arterial highway.

This week council and Kokomea Village Limited have worked together to try to find a solution that would work better for the community. As a result, the underpass project has been deferred for the time being.

While the roundabout work at the intersection of Lake Terrace and Tauhara Ridge Drive will continue, the whole road does not need to close. Council and the developer have agreed that contractors will work on only one side of the road at each time. Traffic heading south will stay on Lake Terrace. Traffic heading north will be detoured around Rainbow Drive during working hours. At night, the road will be open to two-way traffic under temporary speed limits. Heavy traffic will be advised to use the East Taupō Arterial bypass highway.

The duration of work to finish the roundabout is expected to be between Monday 11 July and Monday 25 July, weather dependent. The Taupō bus service is unaffected.

If Lake Terrace is required to be fully closed to allow the centre island of the new roundabout to be completed, this would be for two or three days only between 8am and 3pm, and Rainbow Drive would be available as a detour.

The underpass installation is expected to go ahead when the roads in Kokomea Village have been completed, meaning Lake Terrace traffic could detour through Ngā Roto Estate and Kokomea Village while the underpass work is being done.