Plans For Replacement
The limited earthquake stability, together with increasing traffic demands (over 200,000 vehicles a day, more than on the Auckland Harbour Bridge and the most traffic on a section of road anywhere in New Zealand), led to the planning for a new viaduct structure, which will be able to withstand an earthquake with a 2,500 year return period. Other factors were the very low safety barriers (which once allowed an out-of-control truck to fall onto its roof 15 m below, in 2004), which are also insufficient to prevent debris from falling onto the properties beneath, and the fact that the existing viaduct is a prohibited route for overweight vehicles, forcing more trucks through the city streets.
Major maintenance of the existing structure was also considered as an option. However, the structural elements of the existing viaduct did not lend themselves to easy strengthening, and even a reconditioned viaduct would only have provided an estimated life expectancy of 40-50 more years. With a proposed new structure costing only around 15% more than a repair, and expected to last for over 100 years, it was decided to go for a full replacement.
Read more about this topic: Newmarket Viaduct
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