LGOIMA Request Details

The information you have requested is below and in the attached documents.

Below is the timeline around the decision to removal the walk bridge;

December 2018: Council Senior Structural Engineer inspected the bridge and identified several structural areas of concern.

As a result of the recommendations from the structural assessment, Council undertook a load assessment and a review of the painting and erosion of the structure and reduced maximum occupancy to no more than 3 people at any one time.

February 2019: Council contracted WSP/Opus to undertake a full condition assessment of the bridge.

Council then engaged contractors to action the recommendations of the Opus report.

February 2023: Significant flood event due to Cyclone Gabriel. This caused significant damage:

1. Excessive stress put on guide wires

2. Some cross bracing was revealed, showing excessive corrosion and lack of structural strength.

3. The true left bank was washed away to the extent that the wooden steps were at risk of collapse.

4. Council’s Project Engineer recommended that the bridge be closed to pedestrians with steps removed and rails put up to prevent admittance to the structure.

February 2023: WSP/Opus Structural Engineers engaged to carry out a full structural inspection of the bridge following Cyclone Gabriel.

See attached email dated Tuesday 21 February 2023 for report findings and recommendations of the flood damaged bridges, including Almadale Bridge.

1. WSP/Opus identified that the cost of this would come to a considerable amount and would only return a live load capacity i.e. Maximum no more than 3 persons on the bridge at any one time.

2. WSP/Opus suggested that a full replacement of the bridge might be a more cost-effective solution.

OPUS report 15/01/2019 estimated a maintenance cost over the next 25 years to be $127,000 ex GST. This was prior to Cyclone Gabriel.

Following Cyclone Garbriel in 2023, the cost of this work increased significantly due to significant catastrophic damage to the bridge. Repairs would not have resulted in a fit of purpose product that was financially viable.

Engineers advised the bridge needed to be removed as a health and safety priority and this was actioned by Council officers.

MDC has no current budget allocated to replace the bridge.

See attached various emails: Council reached out to NZDF to see if they had capacity to undertake an engineering exercise to remove and replace the existing bridge, due to the prohibitive costs associated with replacement.

Unfortunately working in collaboration with NZDF was not feasible at the time and funding was not available for this.