A Government lead by the National Party will four-lane the Hawke’s Bay Expressway if the National Party is returned to the Treasury benches at the General Election in October, the party announced today.

The expressway is part of National’s ‘Transport for the Future’ plan, costed at $24 billion and including other major projects nationwide, including four lanes from Whangārei to Tauranga, Mill Road in Auckland, Petone to Grenada and the Cross Valley Link, and in the South Island Belfast to Pegasus and the Woodend Bypass north of Christchurch.

A motorway between Napier and Hastings has been an issue since at least 1961, when Napier was confirmed as the best option for the Hawke’s Bay Airport, and four-laning has been suggested for roughly 20, particularly since the devastation caused by Cyclone Gabrielle in February this year.

Central to the plan is providing two more lanes at the bridge over the Tūtaekurī River near Taradale, a major bottleneck since the Expressway reopened after the storm, and the issue has been considered in a recent rapid review of the Heretaunga Plains roading network, looking at both temporary and long-term projects.

National Party candidates Catherine Wedd (Hastings-based Tukituki) and Katie Nimon (Napier) say four-laning the expressway will bring significant efficiency and resilience to Hawke’s Bay.

“Upgrading the Hawke’s Bay Expressway will improve our region’s resilience and this commitment shows only a National Government will deliver for Hawke’s Bay,” Wedd said.

“A four-lane expressway between Hastings and Napier is going to significantly improve productivity and efficiency in a food-producing region which relies so heavily on this main road between our cities. This will hugely support regional growth.”

“Thousands of people are currently gridlocked on the expressway each day and are waiting hours on a road that needs an upgrade. Four lanes are so desperately needed to get Hawke’s Bay moving.”

Nimon said Hawke’s Bay needed a productive and resilient expressway to bring Napier and Hastings closer together and create a stronger economy.

“The gridlock on the expressway is also affecting our public transport system,” she said. “We have one hospital, one police station, one sports park all shared by our two cities and we should be connected by a reliable efficient road.”

National’s East Coast Resilience Transport Package includes upgrading the Hawke’s Bay Expressway between Hawke’s Bay Airport and Pakipaki from two lanes to four, upgrading State Highway 5 between Taupo and Napier, upgrading State Highway 2 between Napier and Gisborne, and the party says it will prioritise funding for the Hawke’s Bay Expressway, Taupō to Napier, and Napier to Gisborne projects through the $6 billion National Resilience Fund.

Three years ago the National Party pledged $200 million on State Highway 5 between Napier and Taupō if it became the Government in the 2020 election, Wedd saying Labour took the issue “off the table” when it became Government in 2017.

Doug Laing is a senior reporter based in Napier with Hawke’s Bay Today, and has 50 years of journalism experience in news gathering, including breaking news, sports, local events, issues, and personalities.