Totara Valley Road Services Extension
Our Council is extending infrastructure up Totara Valley Road, just to the south of the main Thames township, in order to open up the area for housing development.
The road will be widened and improved, and stormwater, drinking water and wastewater (the three waters) infrastructure will also be improved and extended up the length of the road.
This work will allow for housing growth in the area in the short term, helping to alleviate the identified housing shortage in Thames. It aligns with the Thames and Surrounds Spatial Plan, which has identified areas in the Thames Ward where housing and commercial development could occur.
Stage One – completed autumn 2023
The stormwater culvert under Ngāti Maru Highway (State Highway 25) was upgraded. This addresses potential flooding issues at the foot of Totara Valley Road. Utility infrastructure provided by Chorus has been relocated and Powerco has been undergrounded.
A turning bay from Ngāti Maru Highway into Totara Valley Road has been completed.
Stage Two
Slivers of land needed to widen the road and allow three waters services to be installed or upgraded have already been acquired.
Totara Valley Road will be widened and three waters services extended from Ngāti Maru Highway to Sawmill Road to a carriageway width of 9.5m along with a 2.5m wide shared path.
Following a recent project review, the scope of the Totara Valley road widening has been ‘right-sized’, resulting in a 20% reduction in the total Long Term Plan LTP budget while maintaining the project's core objectives and benefits. Stage 2 of the Totara Valley Road Upgrade, focusing on road and infrastructure enhancements from the State Highway 25 intersection to just past the Sawmill Road intersection, is scheduled to begin construction in the 2025/26 financial year.
Stage Three
Stage 3, covering the road widening to an 8m carriageway, shared path and infrastructure from Sawmill Road to the end of Totara Valley Road, is set to commence in the 2027/28 financial year, subject to progress status on the related structure plan process.
