The Mokau steps joining Te Kauri Road to SH 3 are set to reopen after being closed for over a year.

Waitomo District Council (WDC) begun work on the stairs after concerns were raised in May 2019 about how steep the steps were. An inspection later confirmed the design was not appropriate for the high use environment.

Since closing the steps in July 2019, WDC has worked on a re-design, new consent and rebuild of the lower section. 

Tony Hale, general manager infrastructure service says, “The time taken to repair the steps has been unacceptable.  Unfortunately, a series of unplanned delays including a vehicle leaving the road and damaging the structure and the COVID-19 lockdown period led to the completion date being pushed out.”

73 percent of the cost has been funded by New Zealand Transport Authority (NZTA) as the stairs form part of the road network.

The steps will reopen within the week once WDC receive final engineering sign-off.