State Highway 1 between Waipara and Kaikoura will close for several nights early next month to allow essential roadworks to be carried out.

The closures will run from Sunday 2 November to Thursday 6 November, between 8pm and 5am each night, with work expected to finish on the morning of Friday 7 November. The northern end of the closure will be near the Inland Road and Route 70 intersection close to Kaikoura.

Contractors working on behalf of the New Zealand Transport Agency will rebuild sections of the highway, lay new seal on hairpin bends through the Hundalee Hills, and complete patching and line marking.

Nightly openings will be scheduled to allow travellers to connect to and from Cook Strait ferry sailings. Outside of these times, road users are urged to plan ahead and use detour routes via State Highway 7 and the Inland Road (Route 70). However, the Inland Road is unsuitable for High Productivity Motor Vehicles.

During the day, roadworks will continue under stop-go traffic management with possible delays of up to 15 minutes.

The agency said the night work schedule would allow the project to be completed more efficiently and cost-effectively, with less disruption to motorists overall.

A spokesperson said the work was vital to improving safety and maintaining the resilience of the key transport corridor linking Canterbury and Marlborough.

“We thank people for their patience while this work is undertaken to improve the safety of road users and ensure the resilience of the highway network,” the agency said.