One of the busiest road bridges in Christchurch is set to take 18 months to repair as it needs 25-metre-deep piles to make it more resilient to earthquakes.
The Ferrymead Bridge was due for replacement before the Canterbury quakes.
However, following the February 2011 disaster, Christchurch City Council and the New Zealand Transport Agency decided to build a more robust structure.
The bridge will cost the council $13 million and the Transport Agency just over $22 million.
Two temporary bridges have been built to maintain links with coastal suburbs in the south-east while the demolition of the old bridge and the construction of the new one takes place.
The council is warning residents that the piling work will generate a lot of noise when work begins in April.
