Kopu Bridge

The original bridge was built in 1928, under the lead of the Main Highways Board after negotiations over its construction started in 1911, and planning begun in 1922. It was one of the largest such works of its time, with 23 spans and advanced deep piling for the soft ground of the river bed. Up to the 1960s, traffic used the passing bays, but after angry confrontations between motorists had become more common, lights were installed. In late 2009, a webcam was installed to allow online checking of queue lengths during the holiday periods, a feature that in New Zealand had so far been limited to urban areas. == Replacement ==

In addition to the constrained traffic over the bridge (with flows projected to increase by 2% per year over the next 15 years), In 2006, Transit New Zealand announced their intention to build a second bridge slightly upstream of the existing bridge and to route the State Highway over the new bridge. The start date was at that time set for no earlier than 2011, The new bridge is 587 m long, and has 16 spans, with its foundations being driven 36 m to 50 m deep into the riverbed, due to the soft swampy ground not providing good support otherwise. but in late 2011 it was announced that the bridge would be ready in time for the December 2011 holiday traffic. Due to its historical significance, it was suggested that the existing bridge be retained and upgraded, The old bridge was transferred to a community trust on 19 March 2018 with the intention of reopening the bridge by 2022, but by 2023 this had not been achieved. == References ==