With Coromandel’s main highway still out of action, traffic woes are expected to plague those heading to the peninsula’s beaches this summer.

There were up to an hour of delays on one of the alternative routes to State Highway 25A on the Monday of Labour weekend, Waka Kotahi says.

And while it’s reasonably normal for traffic woes in this area and on a long weekend, the transport agency has noticed increased pressure on the road network in this area due to its closure.

SH25A was decimated by a 100 m landslide after Cyclone Gabrielle and Auckland Anniversary flooding.

In May, it was announced a bridge would be built to replace the huge section of the road was destroyed by the slip to re-open the road, at a cost of up to $40 million.

It was expected to be finished by March 2024.

But as the weather improved, more people were heading to the popular holiday spot on weekends and holidays.

It's a popular spot to own a bach or holiday home, but it also features pristine white sandy beaches.

Waka Kotahi journey manager for Waikato Liam Ryan says Labour weekend Monday saw a 30 minute to one-hour delay at times on SH2 through the Karangahake Gorge.

The slip in January, before repairs began. Photo: Waka Kotahi.

This is one of the detours for travellers who would previously have taken SH25a, with the other being on SH25 via Coromandel or SH29 through the Kaimai Range.

The congestion was down to the volume of traffic coming back through Paeroa and getting stuck at the roundabout, he says.

Travellers reported standstill traffic for those leaving the peninsula, with queues that snaked back for miles.

This isn’t a problem that would be fixed by the summer holidays, and Ryan says road users should expect delays over peak holiday periods.

“We thank everyone for their patience while we continue to work hard at improving the road network following last summer’s storms.”

On top of the closure of SH25A, he says there are still multiple sites on SH25 needing repairs following the storms earlier this year.

Hot Water Beach in Coromandel is a popular spot. Photo: Mark Taylor/Stuff.

Ryan says repairs are being prioritised and sequenced to minimise disruption to traffic, particularly over the summer holiday period.

Six sites on the peninsula are being prioritised this side of Christmas, then work which would cause traffic disruption – such as lane closures – will be minimised until after Waitangi weekend.

Work is to start next week at Ruamahanga – where traffic will go down to a single lane until just before Christmas.

The other sites are Pumpkin Hill, Wharekaho, Kereta Hill, and Te Kouma. Coroglen is nearing completion.

Ryan says general road maintenance teams are also working hard on “chipseal rehabilitation” before Christmas, but there will likely be more work to do after the holiday period.

All roadworks will close down from noon on Friday, December 22, to Sunday night on January 7 to help ease the peak holiday traffic.

An artist's impression of what the new SH25A bridge is expected to look like. Photo: Waka Kotahi/Supplied.

“We are very conscious of striking the balance between the ongoing recovery work, the regular maintenance that is always required to keep the highways up to standard – and the impact on traffic and people’s precious holiday time.”

People can access the agency’s holidays travel map online, which advises of key pressure points on certain days.

Meanwhile, the bridge over the damaged section of SH25A is 60 per cent complete, and the final beam has been laid.

The team will next form the deck surface with 138 pre-cast reinforced concrete deck slabs, and install 44 precast side barriers.

Waka Kotahi says the steel beams will support 1560 tonnes of concrete and asphalt before traffic even made it over the bridge.

The team is also still working on slip stabilisation.

-Rachel Moore/Stuff.