The Government will put $6 million from the Regional Infrastructure Fund into a full replacement of the Monowai suspension bridge in western Southland, ending years of uncertainty over the only practical road into the Monowai Valley.
Associate Regional Development Minister Mark Patterson and South Island Minister James Meager announced the grant on Friday 23 October. Southland District Council, which applied for the funding, will co-fund and deliver the project.
The 105-year-old bridge carries Lake Monowai Road across the Waiau River. It is the sole practical route to the Monowai hydro station and the only road access for several forestry operations, local farms and tourism businesses, including Borland Lodge. It also provides an alternative route into Fiordland National Park.
Its 28.5-tonne weight limit has forced heavy transport operators to split loads, stockpile forestry products or find more expensive alternatives.
Patterson said the bridge was "the sole practical road route into the valley", and that a modern replacement would remove the weight bottleneck.
From re-decking to full rebuild
The council had earlier secured funding from NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi, but only for a new deck. Re-decking would have extended the life of the existing structure without fixing its fundamental limitations, and the bridge did not meet the agency's criteria for full replacement.
Meetings with the community and local businesses showed a strong preference for a full rebuild, and the council took that case to the Regional Infrastructure Fund.
The new bridge will be built to the HN-HO-72 design standard, allowing full Class 1 heavy vehicles of up to 50 tonnes. Construction is expected to be finished by December 2027.
The total project cost is commercial-in-confidence while the job is out to tender. Temporary access arrangements during construction will be investigated and publicised before work begins.
'A vital link'
Southland District Mayor Rob Scott said the bridge was "a vital link" for the Monowai Valley's communities and businesses and for the historic hydro station, and thanked Southland-based Cabinet minister Penny Simmonds for her support.
Meager said the project would strengthen regional resilience, support agriculture, forestry, tourism and recreation, and improve maintenance access to the Monowai hydro station.
The Monowai power station, which has generated electricity since 1925, is one of New Zealand's oldest operating hydro schemes, and the bridge is the only way to get heavy plant to it by road.
The grant was one of two Regional Infrastructure Fund announcements for Southland on the same day, alongside $4 million to complete Mataura Marae. The fund is administered by Kānoa, the regional economic development and investment unit within the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment.
