Cape Palliser Road Business Case

Brief

Cape Palliser Road is a critical but exposed coastal route for South Wairarapa. The Council needed a business case that made the investment argument clearly — to its own elected members and to NZTA as co-investor.

What we did

TTAP prepared the business case end to end: problem definition (built out to multiple problem statements through review), options, economic case and cash-flow, and a cultural context section developed with the Council. We worked it directly with the Mayor, CEO and Council officers through review workshops, and shared the drafts with NZTA for early reviewer input — iterating the document to a final the Council could put forward.

Cape Palliser Road with the seaward shoulder washed out — the carriageway narrowed to a single lane, coned off, with the sea breaking against the exposed edge and houses immediately inland. — The problem, at road level. Coastal erosion is taking the seaward edge of the carriageway, and the resilience of the only route to the community goes with it.

Annotated coastal aerial showing the proposed protection works along the Cape Palliser Road corridor, with a full buttress and revetment treatment marked against the existing shoreline and carriageway. — The option assessed: a full buttress and revetment along the exposed length, sized against the erosion rate and the road’s residual life.

Outcome

An investment-ready business case for Cape Palliser Road, shaped with the Council’s leadership and aligned with NZTA’s review expectations.