The following text is from an Upgrade Report 28 November 2011: One of the oldest bridges remaining on New Zealand’s state highway network, the Waianakarua Bridge over the north branch of the Waianakarua River in North Otago was built in 1874. With the establishment of farms and small towns dotted along the route north between Dunedin and Oamaru, roading became a crucial issue for locals and politicians alike. Roading developed at pace, almost in parallel with the main trunk rail line which opened in the mid-1870s. Bridging rivers was obviously one of the main tasks for engineers and for provincial engineer (and later New Zealand’s chief surveyor) John Turnbull Thomson, it formed a core of his work. In his report of 1868 to the Otago Provincial Council, John Turnbull Thomson, the Engineer of Roads and Works, recommended that on the issue of ‘Bridge construction, I may remark that I would strongly recommend the Government to introduce iron or stone in to all the essentials, as the native timber has proved inferior in quality for permanence’. Geoffrey Thornton’s discussion of bridges indicates how unusual this decision was. Thornton’s research into early bridges in New Zealand indicates that the Waianakarua Bridge is amongst the oldest stone arch bridges built in the country. In 1868 Thomson designed a four arch stone bridge over the south branch of the Waianakarua River, the bridge replacing the existing ford. There was pressure to bridge the north branch of the river as well and funds were set aside under the North Otago Public Works Loan Act in 1872. Thomson was influenced by the Twizel Bridge over the River Till in Northumberland, England, close to his boyhood home. By October 1874 the stone arches of the bridge were completed and it was expected that the approaches would be finished within a week. The North Otago Times gushed that ‘one of the most formidable remaining objects to travellers’ would be overcome. The bridge was constructed in two spans of 60 ft (18.2m) with a rise or ‘versed sine’ of 15 ft (4.5m) to the intrados of the arch. The pier and abutments were built of ‘bastard granite’ quarried nearby. The whole was set in Portland cement. The remaining portions of stonework (spandrel walls, parapet and the lie) were built of Kakanui limestone. The parapets ‘are relieved by handsome and massive pillars at either end and centre of the bridge, which together with the cornice, give an excellent finish to the structure generally.’ The roadway was metalled to a depth of 12 inches. The North Otago Times continued that the Provincial Government ‘are to be congratulated upon the acquisition of a structure wherein the boldness and general excellence of tis design and the works have been carried out so as to reflect the greatest credit upon the Provincial Engineer’s Department and the contractors.’ Throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries the Waianakarua Bridge has crossed the river, withstanding floods and the passing of time and traffic. In 1990 the engineering significance of the Waianakarua Bridge was recognised by the IPENZ Engineering Heritage Committee by a plaque. Built to handle horse traffic, the Waianakarua Bridge came under threat of demolition as the heavy road traffic struggled to negotiate the now narrow bridge. After a long period of discussion, negotiation, and construction (and some opposition) the Waianakarua Bridge was widened by 900mm each side, and the wing walls relocated to match the new width. The bridge’s parapets were removed, each block numbered, the deck strengthened and widened to take modern traffic. The parapets were put back in place and the central pillars finished with copies of the original decorative cappings which had eroded over time. The $950,000 project was completed in April 2005 and the bridge was reopened by New Zealand Historic Places Trust and National MP for Otago David Parker. In 2006 the bridge widening project managed by Transit New Zealand and Opus International Consultants received a merit award in the New Zealand Historic Places Trust’s David Cox Memorial Awards. The award recognised the retention of the bridge’s historical integrity and recognised its importance in its historical setting which included the adjacent flour mill. In 2011 the Waianakarua Bridge still carries road traffic between Herbert and Hampden, one of the oldest bridges still in use on a state highway. This historic place was registered under the Historic Places Act 1980. The following text is the original citation considered by the NZHPT Board at the time of registration. This bridge is one of the few remaining masonry bridge structures of merit. Designed by John Turnbull Thomson, it was completed in 1874 and is said to have been inspired by the Twizel Bridge in Northumberland. It has two large squint arches with vermiculated voussoirs - such refinements being rare in New Zealand at that time. Built of limestone throughout with solid balustrades this bridge is of very sound craftsmanship and superior visual qualities.