ABSTRACT
The M7.8 Kaikoura Earthquake on 14 November 2016 severely damaged a vital highway and railway corridor on the east coast to the South Island of New Zealand. Intense ground shaking triggered large rock avalanches and rock falls from steep rock slopes which totally blocked the transport corridor. Total cost of the insured damage was about $NZ1.8 Bn.This paper outlines the geotechnical input required to ensure the safe and resilient reinstatement of the transport route along the coastal margin of steep rock slopes. The works themselves included; removal of large rock avalanches and rock falls, installation of extensive areas of rock fall mitigation measures, highway and railway realignments and tunnel repairs that will take until late 2019 to complete. On 6 November 2018, it was announced that this project had been voted the ICE People’s Choice Award for International Civil Engineering Projects in 2018 3 .
