State Highway 60 is a

state highway A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either ''numbered'' or ''maintained'' by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered by a ...

servicing the far northwest of the

South Island The South Island, also officially named , is the larger of the two major islands of New Zealand in surface area, the other being the smaller but more populous North Island. It is bordered to the north by Cook Strait, to the west by the Tasman ...

of New Zealand. Running between the settlements of

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, ...

(south of

Nelson Nelson may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Nelson'' (1918 film), a historical film directed by Maurice Elvey * ''Nelson'' (1926 film), a historical film directed by Walter Summers * ''Nelson'' (opera), an opera by Lennox Berkeley to a lib ...

) and Collingwood, it is long and lies entirely within the

Tasman District Tasman District () is a local government district in the northwest of the South Island of New Zealand. It borders the Canterbury Region, West Coast Region, Marlborough Region and Nelson City. It is administered by the Tasman District Council, ...

. It is the northernmost highway in the South Island and is a popular tourist route, servicing

Motueka Motueka is a town in the South Island of New Zealand, close to the mouth of the Motueka River on the western shore of Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere. It is the second largest in the Tasman Region, with a population of as of The surrounding dis ...

Abel Tasman National Park Abel Tasman National Park is a New Zealand national park located between Golden Bay and Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere at the north end of the South Island. It is named after Abel Tasman, who in 1642 became the first European explorer to sight New ...

Golden Bay Golden Bay may refer to: * Golden Bay / Mohua, a bay at the northern end of New Zealand's South Island * Golden Bay (Malta), a bay and beach on the coastline of Malta * Golden Bay High School, a high school in Takaka, New Zealand * Golden Bay, Wes ...

, and

Farewell Spit Farewell Spit ( mi, Onetahua) is a narrow sand spit at the northern end of the Golden Bay, South Island of New Zealand. It runs eastwards from Cape Farewell, the island's northernmost point. Farewell Spit is a legally protected Nature Reserve ...

Route

The highway starts at Richmond at a roundabout junction with SH 6 and proceeds in the northwesterly direction across the Waimea Plains. Near Māpua, 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

. Just past

Riwaka Riwaka ( mi, Riuwaka) is a small settlement in the Tasman District of New Zealand's South Island. It lies beside Tasman Bay / Te Tai-o-Aorere, five kilometres north of Motueka, and close to the mouth of the Riuwaka River. The land where the tow ...

, the road to

Kaiteriteri Kaiteriteri is a town and seaside resort in the Tasman Region of the South Island of New Zealand. It is close to both Mārahau, the main gateway to Abel Tasman National Park, and the town of Motueka. Kaiteriteri is a small coastal town re ...

and

branches off to the right while SH 60 branches to the left. The highway then rises towards

Tākaka Hill Tākaka Hill is a range of hills in the northwest of the South Island of New Zealand. Made of marble that has weathered into many strange forms and with numerous sink holes, it is typical karst country. The marble is Ordovician in age and from th ...

(elevation 791 metres above sea level) and the notorious Eureka Bend. The highway then descends into the Tākaka Valley and passes through the town of

Tākaka Tākaka is a small town situated at the southeastern end of Golden Bay, at the northern end of New Zealand's South Island, located on the lower reaches of the Tākaka River. State Highway 60 runs through Takaka and follows the river valley b ...

. The highway then hugs the coastline of

before terminating just outside the township of Collingwood.

History

At first there was no road connecting the coastal areas about Bronte, Māpua 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. In 2003, the terminus at Collingwood was curtailed 1.1 km to the intersection of Collingwoood-Bainham Main Road. Until 2010, before the construction of the Ruby Bay bypass, SH 60 followed the coastline around Māpua.

Gallery

File:Takaka, Golden Bay Not So Sunny Today.jpg, SH 60 as Commercial Street passing through

File:New Zealand, Top of the South Island (Nelson), Skydiving.jpg, Aerial view of SH 60 passing through the southern section of

References

External links

New Zealand Transport Agency
{{New Zealand State Highway navbox 60

Route

History

Gallery

See also

References

External links