Resurfacing programme

The seal on a road is like paint on your house - it keeps water out of the structure underneath. Like paint, the seal breaks down over time and starts to let water in.

When the surface of a road starts to break down it is time to resurface. The ideal time to resurface is just before any easily visible damage occurs, so your road may still look to be in reasonable condition before we complete resurfacing. We have a continuous programme and assess and prioritise the roads that need resurfacing each year.

Generally, roads are resurfaced with chipseal except where the traffic volumes or pavement conditions justify otherwise. Roads that have previously have asphalt surfacing may be resealed with chipseal.

The resurfacing programme supports Tauranga City Council’s goals by:

• Protecting the natural environment: Keeping water out of the structure beneath the road reduces the need for major reconstruction.
• Ensuring a well-planned, connected city: Proactive maintenance keeps roads safe and reliable.
• Supporting business, education, and inclusivity: Well-maintained roads are essential for access, economic activity, and community wellbeing.
• Delivering value and resilience: The programme is designed to be cost-effective, fair, and sustainable, balancing technical needs with community feedback.

We use an asset management programme to decide where resurfacing is needed. This combines data, modelling, and skilled engineering observations to prioritise roads based on network needs, resources, and funding.

Most maintenance is co-funded by NZTA (51%) and runs in three-year funding cycles. Funding can change if central government updates its transport policy.

Since 2012, hot mix (asphalt) on low volume local roads has been overlaid with chipseal instead of asphalt. The reason for this is primarily cost. Asphalt is approximately five times more expensive than chipseal. Asphalt is typically replaced with asphalt on main, arterial (high volume) roads or in areas with a high volume of vehicle turns.

The chipseal process

1. Minor repairs are carried out prior to resealing.
2. The contractor will contact residents and businesses in the street about a week before work begins.
3. Hot bitumen is sprayed on the existing road surface and stone sealing chips are spread on the bitumen and rolled to bed the chips into the bitumen. It is the binder that holds chipseal in place.
4. Traffic is then allowed back onto the road. There will be a temporary speed limit in place and warning signs to advise motorists and to protect the new surface while it is ‘settling down’.
5. After two or three days, excess chips are swept away and road marking repainted. Temporary traffic management will be removed at this time.
6. As many as three additional sweeps may follow in the next six months as it is usual for some chip to come loose due to wear and temperature changes.

The asphalt surfacing process

1. Minor repairs are carried out prior to resurfacing.
2. The contractor will contact residents and businesses in the street about a week before work begins.
3. The old asphalt surface is removed using a milling machine.
4. New asphalt is laid. This work may be done at night as these are generally streets with high traffic volumes.
5. Traffic is not permitted to travel over the new surface until it has cooled down. The contractor will advise when the road is ready for traffic.
6. After 2-3 days line markings, traffic loops and special surfaces are reinstated.
7. Temporary traffic management is removed.

In the lead-up to resurfacing, our contractors will deliver a letter about a week before work starts. This gives us a chance to consider any feedback and make changes if necessary.

We may also use electronic variable messaging boards (VMS signs) to inform drivers of the upcoming works.

When the work happens there will be trucks, rollers and workers using other equipment. Expect some dust, noise and vibration from heavy machinery particularly if we have to remove the top surface before the new seal goes on.

Access to your property may be affected. Generally, residents and businesses will still be able to access their properties if required. Please ask the traffic management road crew and allow them time to arrange access. The letter you receive from our contractor will have the details and type of traffic management, such as stop/go. Please follow traffic management road crew directions and temporary speed limits, taking extra care when travelling through the work site as the road surface and levels of the road may vary.

After chipsealing, you will notice loose chip on the road. This is expected and traffic will embed the chip over the next few months. Please maintain the temporary speed limit while it is in place. Driving too fast will flick loose stone chips from the road. We will be back to sweep the loose chip and continue to monitor the road and return to sweep for loose chip again when necessary.

New chip seal can be damaged by a car’s power steering, particularly at driveway entrances. If you back out and turn the wheel while you are sitting in the same spot the stone chip will ‘screw’ off the bitumen and damage the road. The bitumen-covered chip can then be tracked into properties or stick to your shoes. To reduce the risk of damage, keep your vehicle moving before turning the wheel.

If bitumen covered chip is tracked onto your driveway you can remove it by spot cleaning with a little turpentine.

If bitumen is tracked onto your driveway, or shoes you can remove it by spot cleaning with a little turpentine, WD-40 lubricant, CRC or kerosene.

If your road is scheduled to be resurfaced, our contractor will advise you in advance of the works. When resurfacing is planned, we ask you to park clear of the work area during working hours, which may include nights.

If vehicles are in the way on the day, they may be towed to a convenient parking spot nearby. After the work is completed, these are normally towed back to where they were found, or the nearest available park. If yours is not where you parked it, first check nearby streets before calling the contractor. The contractor’s contact details will be on your roadworks notice.

The workers will be doing everything possible to make sure this work is completed safely. You can help by keeping yourself, children and pets well clear of our work sites. Please follow the direction of our traffic control staff.

Please take your bin out as normal; we work with the rubbish company to ensure your bins are still emptied.

Typically, each site takes one day to resurface, but additional work such as road markings may take three or four days to reinstate. If it is necessary to first remove a layer of surfacing, the work may be spread over two or more days.

Surfacing work is very weather dependent. If rain is forecast the work may be postponed (even after letter drops have been undertaken) as the seal may fail if the surface is wet or rain occurs soon after surfacing.

No. Cobblestone paving in suitable condition will not be removed as part of the resurfacing programme.

Chipseal is the standard for most local streets because it’s proven, cost-effective and supported by national funding. Alternatives such as asphalt cost much more, and the extra cost isn’t subsidised by NZTA.

We do trial new products, but some don’t perform well in our local conditions. Before switching, we need confidence that an option will last and be affordable over its whole life.

If you have ideas or supporting information about alternatives, please share them. We’ll consider these in future planning and continue looking for better solutions.

• There are high volumes of traffic on the road during the day.
• We can complete the works quicker and there is less disruption overall for the community.

Unfortunately, the noise from our equipment and vehicles such as reversing beeps can travel at night. We apologise in advance for this inconvenience. Our contractors try to keep the noise to a minimum.

The primary reason is cost. Asphalt is five times more expensive than chipseal. Our resurfacing programme receives 51 % funding from NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) which only subsidises asphalt for certain types of roads.

Historically, subdivision roads are surfaced in asphalt by developers as they are more appealing to buyers. The council cannot afford to resurface with asphalt when the traffic volumes and engineering requirements do not warrant it, and it doesn’t meet the NZTA funding criteria. We resurface with chipseal to protect the underlying pavement layers and avoid expensive road rebuilds that cause a lot of disruption.

Chipsealing vs Asphalt in New Zealand Road Resurfacing

After chipsealing operations, you will notice loose chip on the road. This is expected and traffic will embed the chip over the next few months. If you have concerns about excessive loose chips or other issues after resealing, please contact us for advice or to report the issue.

Council has a resealing policy, which requires the level of service for road reseals to be ‘fit for purpose’ with the type of surfacing used being finally determined by an engineering assessment.

In general, this means that category 1, 2 and 3 roads are sealed in asphalt and category 4 and 5 roads are sealed with chipseal.

The road categories are:

In special circumstances, exceptions to this policy may occur for engineering reasons.