Retaining walls rebuild continues in Lyttelton

Good news for residents in Lyttelton's Cunningham Terrace and Sumner Road: all easement agreements required for retaining wall ground anchors have now been received by SCIRT. Work will begin on Cunningham Terrace the week beginning 27 August. It is expected to take about eight months.

"We are delighted to have this work back on track again," said Duncan Gibb, SCIRT General Manager. "It's been a long wait for people at a time when everyone wants certainty."

Meanwhile, on the east side of the port town, retaining wall work that was stopped on Sumner Road resumes on 20 August. A works notice has gone into letterboxes this week.

Preparatory work on both projects was curtailed while easement agreements from all affected land owners were finalised.

The easements for the Christchurch City Council cover the positioning of ground anchors under private properties. Ground anchors are horizontally-drilled steel pins encased in concrete. They provide greatly increased strength to the retaining wall and the road, particularly in the event of any future earthquakes, as well as increased security for residents and road users.

Where ground anchors have been used in the past on Lyttelton's Dublin Street and Sutton Quay retaining walls, they have stood up extremely well through the earthquakes. Other streets in Lyttelton are also getting rebuilt retaining walls with preparatory work starting in several places.

Retaining walls city-wide

SCIRT will be rebuilding hundreds of publicly-owned retaining walls in the Port Hills. Many more are on private property and will be rebuilt by land owners, as part of earthquake repairs.

SCIRT has prioritised the repair of retaining walls that have impacts on roads, underground services, such as wastewater and water supply, or have a risk of failure that could cause public safety or access issues. Retaining walls above three metres in height may require ground anchors to hold them in place.

"Rebuilding these publicly-owned retaining walls is extremely important for the people who live and work throughout the Port Hills," said Duncan Gibb. "These walls benefit people living next to them and also road users, pedestrians, local businesses and anyone who is serviced by the underground pipes located inside the road.

Read the original:
Retaining walls rebuild continues in Lyttelton