The government announced yesterday (Thursday April 4) that it has more than doubled the budget for Queenstown's SH6 upgrades to an eye-watering $250M.

Transport minister Simeon Brown was in Frankton to turn the first sod as the four-year Queenstown New Zealand Upgrade Programme gets underway.

He confirmed the government has upped the budget for the project from its original $113M.

“We know the significant benefits around efficiency and productivity of this critical roading connection need to happen,” he said.

Transport Minister Simeon Brown

The project includes the remodelling of the BP roundabout, an upgrade of Frankton bus station, a new roundabout at the Lakes Hayes Estate turnoff on Ladies Mile, and various other improvements to SH6, including five sets of traffic lights.

The first 18 months will include work to improve underground services, including installing a 1.4 metre diameter stormwater pipe. 

All that work will be off the highway, so it won't cause too much disruption to traffic, NZTA said.

Contractors will begin felling trees at the Frankton golf course, opposite the bus interchange, on Monday (April 8) morning.

The BP roundabout will be replaced with a traffic lights intersection, featuring new bus lanes and improved access for pedestrians and cyclists. Around 27,000 vehicles pass through the BP roundabout on an average day, and up to 44,000 on peak days, according to NZTA figures, while an estimated 15,000 per day use the bus hub.

The project aims to improve traffic flow along SH6 and SH6A, between Frankton and Lake Hayes, and provide better road conditions for buses and active travel.

The works are being delivered via the Kā Huanui a Tāhuna alliance, which has been responsible for the overbudget Queenstown Town Centre Arterial Stage 1 project.

PHOTOS: Paul Taylor