[ChrisZwolle]

Alice does a better job than Bertha in getting you from A to B

 

[Svartmetall]

I've been asked to post these photos here.

Driving back to Auckland from Northland on the new section of toll road.



Motorways and sprawl and we're most definitely on the Northern Motorway now.



Traffic was picking up the closer we got.



Starting to see the skyline.



Near the harbour bridge.



Auckland skyline.



The infamous harbour bridge.







View of the sky tower.



Approaching the central motorway junction.



It cuts through the city rather...



The building you see at the top is Auckland Grammar School - one of the top boys schools in New Zealand.



A nice volcanic cone in the centre of Auckland to finish off the picture. This is one of many that dot the cityscape. This is on the Southern Motorway heading towards Manukau.

 

[ChrisZwolle]

Nice photos. New Zealand highways look so neat.

 

[KIWIKAAS]

Nice pics Svarty.
Looking at the traffic on the Puhoi section it does seem to indicate that traffic volumes do warrant an extension to Warkworth. What is your impression on that?

 

[Svartmetall]

Nice pics Svarty.
Looking at the traffic on the Puhoi section it does seem to indicate that traffic volumes do warrant an extension to Warkworth. What is your impression on that?

Well, yes and no. It's a tough one given the associated costs of such an extension for such a limited population. It really would be a holiday highway for Aucklanders rather than being an appreciable economic gain for the region given most of the traffic is holiday rather than lorries coming from Northland.

I would say there are more pressing concerns in the Auckland region than this. I'd rather see better upgrades of other state highways to motorway standard than this one.

 

[KIWIKAAS]

^^ yes, it's a tricky one. The route certainly carries allot of leisure traffic to the Warkworth region and all the way up to the Bay of Islands.
One could argue the same for many French autoroutes as well and certainly Spain and Portugal have a number of leisure 'holiday highways' too which are important links between regions. The economic viability of the Warkworth extension would be largely determined in revenue from tolls and highly probably increased leisure industry in the north.

I have always felt that the route needed to be massively upgraded but hadn't actually considered or thought a motorway would be the government's prefered option.
On the other hand, the topography of the route is so rugged that I wonder if an upgrade of the existing route (to 2x2 for instance) would be much cheaper than the motorway option.

 

[ChrisZwolle]

SH 1 Puhoi - Warkworth

Pūhoi – Warkworth RoNS granted final consent

The NZ Transport Agency welcomes the final decision from a Board of Inquiry to grant designation and resource consents for the construction of the Pūhoi to Warkworth stage of the Ara Tūhono – Pūhoi to Wellsford Road of National Significance (RoNS).

The Board’s decision represents a significant step towards improving the safety, reliability and resilience of State Highway 1 between Northland and Auckland for freight, tourism and drivers, says the Transport Agency’s Highway Manager, Brett Gliddon.

Construction is anticipated to begin between 2016 and 2019, with the project estimated to take five years to build.​

Press release: http://www.nzta.govt.nz/about/media/releases/3637/news.html

 

[ChrisZwolle]

Auckland

$140m for fast trip to airport

Traffic will gain clearer runs to and from Auckland Airport from a $140 million accelerated project to turn George Bolt Memorial Drive into a full motorway.

The Transport Agency hopes to start the project in the New Year and complete it in early 2017.​

Full report: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=11330210

 

[KIWIKAAS]

^^ they should also complete the SH20A-20 interchange with a southbound flyover. At the moment it is only 3/4 complete.

 

[ChrisZwolle]

SH20 Waterview Connection, Auckland

Breakthrough for Alice in key Auckland tunnel project

The machine that has been boring underneath Auckland's western suburbs for 10 months emerged into daylight this afternoon.

Alice, the tunnel boring machine, has completed the first of the twin road tunnels that will connect Auckland's motorways in what's being hailed as an amazing feat of engineering.

The tunnel is the 10th largest diameter tunnel in the world and at 2.4 kilometres is the longest road tunnel in New Zealand.​

Full report: http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/breakthrough-alice-in-key-auckland-tunnel-project-6094862

 

[KIWIKAAS]

Moving house....

Moving a house to make room for the new Kapiti Expressway

See the full album of the move here:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/[email protected]/sets/72157648143423731/

Apparently this house was moved to make way for the Kapiti Expressway currently being built aprox 50km north of Wellington

 

[KIWIKAAS]

Hamilton - Southern Links Flyover video
http://youtu.be/fFHfSsVTWSM

Part of a greater project that will nearly encircle Hamilton with new arterial and motorway grade roads.
The Southern Links will connect State Highway 1 with State Highway 3 from both the southern (Cambridge) and northern (Auckland) approaches.

 

[KIWIKAAS]

Looking north east along the Ngaruawahia section of the Waikato Expressway (State Highway 1, north of Hamilton).

 

[PinPeat]

Part of the construction of the NZ Transport Agency's Waterview Connection and Western Ring Route.
Great North Road,
Point Chevalier, Auckland.

Tar and Cement by jimjiraffe, on Flickr

 

[ChrisZwolle]

Some aerial photos of the Waterview Connection in Auckland.

 

[ChrisZwolle]

Waikato Expressway

Green light for final sections of Waikato Expressway

The Transport Agency board has approved $1.08 billion to fund construction of the Hamilton and Longswamp sections of the Expressway.

The Transport Agency also expects to announce the successful tenderer for the $458million Huntly section this month.

The Transport Agency’s Waikato and Bay of Plenty regional director Harry Wilson said the green light from the board meant that all seven sections of the expressway will be built, under construction or out to tender by the end of 2015.

Mr Wilson said the 21.8km Hamilton section and the 15.2km Huntly sections were the largest and most complex sections of the expressway, and would also bring the biggest benefits in terms of travel time savings and safety.

Full press release: http://www.nzta.govt.nz/about/media/releases/3991/news.html

 

[ChrisZwolle]

New Waitemata Harbour crossing future-proofed

Minister of Transport, Simon Bridges, has taken steps to future-proof the route for an additional Waitemata Harbour crossing in view of the rapid growth Auckland is set to undergo in the next 20 years.

“The preferred route for the additional crossing is a tunnel east of the Auckland Harbour Bridge between the Esmonde Road interchange on the North Shore, and Victoria Park Tunnel and Central Motorway Junction in central Auckland.

The NZ Transport Agency says an additional crossing is likely to cost between $4 billion and $6 billion, and is likely to be needed between 2025 and 2030. A construction start date will depend on a number of factors, including the rate of freight and traffic growth.
​

Full press release: http://beehive.govt.nz/release/new-waitemata-harbour-crossing-future-proofed

 

[ethanjosiah]

New Zealand Roads

Here's a selection of photos taken by myself on the roads of New Zealand. Apologies for the poor quality of some photos.

SH73 near Kumara Junction, West Coast

SH6 in Ross, West Coast

SH73 near Arthur's Pass

Otira Viaduct near Arthur's Pass

SH73 near Castle Hill

Burke's Pass, Canterbury

Lindis Pass, Otago

Wanaka, Otago

Tekapo, Canterbury

Auckland Central

Christchurch, Canterbury

SH8 near Twizel

SH6 near Wanaka

SH1 near Kaikoura

SH6 near Queenstown

 

[xrtn2]

^^ great:cheers:

 

[ChrisZwolle]

The first six kilometre segment of the Tauranga Eastern Link is planned to open this week. It runs east to Domain Road.

http://www.nzta.govt.nz/about/media/releases/4175/news.html