Horizontal repairs come in under budget

Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Minister Gerry Brownlee says it’s a credit to all involved that the costs of Christchurch’s horizontal infrastructure repair and replacement programme will come in under the maximum budget allocated, saving taxpayers and ratepayers money.

“Good planning and efficient work on the ground means the programme of repairing eligible quake damaged roads, bridges and underground pipes will be completed for $2.69 billion, $473 million less than estimated at the time of the Cost Sharing Agreement between the Crown and Christchurch City Council in 2013,” Mr Brownlee says.

“The final saving illustrates the success of the alliancing model for major infrastructure projects.

“Work is allocated to lead contractors by the Stronger Christchurch Infrastructure Rebuild Team (SCIRT), with funding from the Crown, Council and NZ Transport Agency.

“What this saving means is that the Crown will now contribute around $1.689 billion to the repair programme, with Christchurch City Council contributing $1.016 billion, saving ratepayers $108 million.

“In addition to the $1.689 billion Crown cost of the SCIRT programme, a further $46 million has been set aside for other infrastructure projects in Christchurch that fall outside the eligibility criteria.

“This funding will be subject to discussion and business case provisions,” Mr Brownlee says.