New Zealand State Highway 60

State Highway 60
Route information
Maintained by New Zealand Transport Agency
Length:	116.0 km (72.1 mi)
Major junctions
South end:	Main Road Hope/Gladstone Road and Bateup Road at Richmond
North end:	Collingwood
Location
Primary destinations:	Motueka, Riwaka, Takaka
Highway system
New Zealand state highways Motorways and expressways List Unused ← SH 58 SH 61 →

State Highway 60 is a state highway servicing the far northwest of the South Island of New Zealand. Running between the settlements of Richmond (south of Nelson) and Collingwood, it is 116 kilometres (72 mi) long and lies entirely within the Tasman District. It is the northernmost highway in the South Island and is a popular tourist route, servicing Motueka, Abel Tasman National Park, Golden Bay, and Farewell Spit.

Route

The highway starts at Richmond at a roundabout junction with SH 6 and proceeds in the northwesterly direction across the Waimea Plains. Near Mapua, the road deviates onto the Ruby Bay bypass (Mamaku Drive) and emerges on the shores of the Moutere Inlet adjacent to Tasman Village. The highway then passes along the edge of Motueka Estuary and through the major town of Motueka. Just past Riwaka, the road to Kaiteriteri and Abel Tasman National Park branches off to the right while SH 60 branches to the left. The highway then rises towards Takaka Hill and the notorious Eureka Bend (elevation 791 metres above sea level).^[1] The highway then descends into the Takaka Valley and passes through the town of Takaka. The highway then hugs the coastline of Golden Bay before terminating at Collingwood.^[2]

History

At first there was no road connecting the coastal areas about Bronte, Mapua and Tasman. Early settlers had roads from landing sites on Waimea Inlet and along ridges, and they avoided crossing the peripheral swampy valleys. When the Coastal Highway was constructed it was gravel and the Inland (Moutere) Highway was the main highway. At some point in about the 1970s, the coastal route became the main route. Until 2010, before the construction of the Ruby Bay bypass, SH 60 followed the coastline around Mapua.^[3][4][5]

Gallery

• 
  SH 60 as Commercial Street passing through Takaka
• 
  Aerial view of SH 60 passing through the southern section of Motueka

See also

• List of New Zealand State Highways

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to State Highway 60 (New Zealand).

External links

• New Zealand Transport Agency

New Zealand state highways
List of New Zealand state highways List of unused highways in New Zealand List of motorways and expressways in New Zealand
National	SH 1 (incl. SH 1B, SH 1D) SH 2 (incl. SH 2B) SH 3 (incl. SH 3A) SH 4 SH 5 SH 6 (incl. SH 6A) SH 7 (incl. SH 7A) SH 8 (incl. SH 8A, SH 8B)
North Island	SH 10 SH 11 SH 12 SH 14 SH 15 SH 16 SH 18 SH 20 (incl. SH 20A, SH 20B) SH 21 SH 22 SH 23 SH 24 SH 25 (incl. SH 25A) SH 26 SH 27 SH 28 SH 29 (incl. SH 29A) SH 30 (incl. SH 30A) SH 31 SH 32 SH 33 SH 34 SH 35 SH 36 SH 37 SH 38 SH 39 SH 41 SH 43 SH 44 SH 45 SH 46 SH 47 SH 48 SH 49 SH 50 (incl. SH 50A) SH 53 SH 54 SH 56 SH 57 SH 58
South Island	SH 60 SH 62 SH 63 SH 65 SH 67 (incl. SH 67A) SH 69 SH 71 SH 73 SH 74 (incl. SH 74A) SH 75 SH 76 SH 77 SH 78 SH 79 SH 80 SH 82 SH 83 SH 84 SH 85 SH 86 SH 87 SH 88 SH 90 SH 93 SH 94 SH 95 SH 96 SH 97 SH 98 SH 99
Former state highways	SH 1A SH 2A SH 15 SH 15A SH 17 SH 36 SH 40 SH 47A SH 49A SH 52 SH 57A SH 61 SH 70 SH 72 SH 73A SH 89 SH 91 SH 92
Touring routes	Twin Coast Discovery Highway Thermal Explorer Highway Pacific Coast Highway Classic New Zealand Wine Trail Alpine Pacific Triangle Great Alpine Highway Foothills Scenic Route Inland Scenic Route Southern Scenic Route