Slip moving at a 'steady rate' keeps West Coast highway, rail link closed

Tuesday, 29 October 2019

The slip in Omoto, east of Greymouth, continues to disrupt road, rail, business and tourism.

Business is down on the West Coast as State Highway 7 and the rail link to Greymouth remain closed as a massive slip continues to move at a 'steady rate'.

The historically active slip closed SH7 near Greymouth on the West Coast early in October after weeks of wet weather.

The slip in on State Highway 7, the road between Reefton and Greymouth.

The slip had begun to move in mid-August. The section of SH7, the main road linking Reefton and Greymouth, reopened on October 15 to a single lane but closed again days later after heavy rain caused it to slip another 2.5 metres. It has moved another 5m since then.

The closure has cut off Kaiata and Dobson residents from direct access to Greymouth.

* Slumping West Coast road will be shut until at least Friday

* Slumping West Coast road remains closed, with tourist train blocked**

Dobson Challenge manager Taran Singh said business had been severely affected by the road closure.

'The road being closed means business has gone down and down. We are down probably 50 per cent if not more,' he said.

'We are getting no more customers and tourists, we are usually very busy in the mornings, now we are really quiet.'

He had not been informed when the road would be fixed, except that it could be months.

The TranzAlpine railway was also closed, forcing passengers to get off at Arthur's Pass and either stay there or take a bus to Greymouth.

Greymouth shop owner Stewart Nimmo said town was 'extremely quiet'.

'It's really having an impact, how much I don't know. Some people might choose to come to Greymouth on the bus but I know some people have cancelled their trip because they can't get the train all the way,' he said.

Grey district mayor Tania Gibson said businesses particularly in Kaiata and Dobson were 'suffering' since the road closure.

The closure added up to 40 minutes travel time to the route and businesses had to pay extra for freight costs, as well as residents being forced to pay extra for petrol to commute to Greymouth for work.

'One business I spoke to in Kaita Park have had to pay an extra $1900 in fuel for staff. The businesses out there are concerned about the lack of communication. They want to know is it going to take one month, three, six or nine. At the moment we just don't know,' she said.

School busses had an extra 40 minutes journey to get to Greymouth and the Ministry of Education had refused to allow busses travel on the road even when it was open to one lane due to health and safety concerns, she said.

NZTA's West Coast maintenance contract manager Moira Whinham said the slip has not shown any sudden movements over the weekend, but it was continuing to move at a 'steady rate'.

NZTA and KiwiRail geotechnical advisors and highway and rail managers had met to discuss what would be done to reopen the road and railway.

'We know that the movement is caused by groundwater deep within the slip. The next step is to see if we can drain the water from the slip surface and see if that will arrest the instability at road and rail level,' she said.

NZTA would use a drill rig to investigate whether the area could be drained.

'By the week starting 11 November, we should have a better idea if the drainage strategy is succeeding and if that will allow us to provide a short-term solution to rebuild the highway and rail track.'

Geotechnical advisors were working on a longer-term solution to reduce the potential for future slips. She said the slip had caused a significant impact upon the TranzAlpine service to the West Coast, as well as freight, and been inconvenient for local people living east of the slip site.

'We understand the disruption and inconvenience this is causing to people, particularly residents in Kaiata and Dobson, and ask for their patience while we work to make sure we have a robust repair strategy. We are working closely with KiwiRail to make sure what we do will provide long term security for both the state highway and rail link.'

KiwiRail's South Island operations general manager Jeanine Benson said KiwiRail was working hard to resume service to the West Coast as quickly as possible.

'KiwiRail is investigating whether or not the train could instead run as far as Moana, but that decision depends on the timetable for remedying the slip at Omoto, which is yet to be determined,' she said.

Freight deliveries of coal and milk have been transported by road.