64 | CONTRACTING GHD Dunedin Vauxhall to Portobello in no time Russell Fredric The Peninsula Connection project stretched over more than 25 kilometres. QUALITY COBBLESTONING & ASPHALT SERVICES IN DUNEDIN 027 434 1505 mark@qccontracting.nz qualitycobblestoningandasphalt.co.nz Proud to be associated with GHD Dunedin I LESTONING & LT SERVICES IN DUNEDIN • ASPHALT & COBBLESTONING • EXCAVATION & EARTHMOVING • RETAININGWALLS & LANDSCAPING • DEMOLITION & SITE WORKS Contact David Brown today for a no obligation, free quote 0274 404 509 or david@nicholsgroup.co.nz We cater for residential and commercial projects, from design & consultation right through to construction and completion. We do all aspects of landscape work including paving, decks, fences, retaining walls, stonework, lawns, water features and much more! Proud to be a part of this important and award-winning project for the community We’re proud to support Fulton Hogan E: richard@xfactor.org.nz The latest completed stage of Dunedin’s Peninsula Connection project has been widely praised by residents and industry professionals, as well as being highly rewarding for the contractors involved. The nine section stage of the Peninsula Connection from Vauxhall to Portobello has also become an award-winning project for lead designer GHD, Dunedin City Council (DCC) and the key contractors involved. Together they received the 2021 IPWEA NZ (Institute of Public Works Engineers Australasia) asset management excellence award in the Excellence in Road Safety category. GHD is a leading global engineering consultancy, specialising in transportation, water, energy and resources, environment, property and buildings. Connecting the townships of Macandrew Bay, Broad Bay and Portobello to Dunedin City, for many walkers and cyclists the previously dangerous narrow and winding 15 kilometre stretch was necessarily the road less travelled. Bound by the coastal topography of the harbour on one side and steep land on the other, the road had limited safety margins for road users and accidents had occurred. The road was even more unsafe at night and in poor weather, however all this has progressively changed since the start of the Peninsula Connection project in 2016/2017, with the now completed sections being a coastal corridor for all to safely enjoy. In total, the Peninsula Connection project comprises 16 construction sections over more than 25 kilometres from Vauxhall Yacht Club on Portobello Road to the entrance to Taiaroa Head on Harington Point Road. Some isolated sections had already been completed but provided no connectivity. GHD successfully bid for the professional services contract in 2016, which included the engineering design of the remaining six sections that would achieve continuous connection from Vauxhall to Portobello, with physical works being led by Fulton Hogan. A constrained budget encouraged innovation amongst the DCC, GHD and the main contractor Fulton Hogan. Early in the design process, the team adopted a value engineering process approach that achieved an incredible $18 million in savings bringing the project within the $70M budget, while still achieving an outstanding result for DCC and the community. GHD team lead Graham McIlroy says of the 39 different value engineering ideas, 13 were related to identifying potential bulk-fill material alternatives, where the largest costs savings were identified, with more than 500,000 cubic metres of bulk fill material required for the entire peninsula project. “Stringent resource consent conditions, which included the historical significance of the area, also challenged us to innovate in our approach.” One of the peninsula road’s most historically significant features was its existing seawalls; 40,000 cubic metres of quarried rock was hand-placed to build the sea wall along the newly-constructed pathway. “Basalt rock was a deliberate decision, chosen to replicate the existing historic handplaced sea walls. Sections of rock walls built as early as the 1860s have also been restored.” In addition to roading works and creating the adjoining walkway/cycleway infrastructure, the project included seating, landscaping, “Basalt rock was a deliberate decision, chosen to replicate the existing historic handplaced sea walls.” boardwalks and stairways to the harbour and rest areas, providing for welcoming and accessible public amenities. Along with the close collaboration with DCC and contractors, active engagement with the community was crucial and their input invaluable, Graham says. That engagement was facilitated through community board meetings, open days and incorporating suggestions such as the types of vegetation and trees for the considerable plantings, the placement of bus stops and car parks, harbour access points, lighting along with numerous other practical elements that were incorporated into the project. “For a community, it’s all those finer points that makes it.” “Of all the community projects, it’s had the best community feedback I’ve ever known. When we are on site people approach us to say ‘great job, it’s awesome’.” Graham and the GHD team are “stoked” about the recognition of the IPWEA NZ award. “Everyone deserved it because it’s a road safety excellence award and it really has achieved what we set out to achieve; it’s safe for pedestrians, cyclists, and motorists with a wider shoulder and it just gets so well used.”
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