Watch the road: The new operations centre replaces the old control base alongside the harbour bridge at Northcote. Photo / Natalie Slade
$6m Takapuna base includes an emergency co-ordination room
Motorists will be offered information about traffic hold-ups wherever they roam on the state highway network from a $6 million national operations centre officially opening this morning in Auckland.
The Transport Agency has built the new centre at the Smales Farm technology and office park beside the Northern Motorway and
busway in Takapuna, next to Telstra's headquarters with its strong fibre optic connection.
In replacing the traffic management centre at the old harbour bridge control building in Northcote, it will house a combination of regional and national functions, and an emergency co-ordination room in case of disasters or major events such as motorcades for visiting dignitaries.
Tommy Parker, the agency's northern state highways manager, says the centre is offering the first national system for monitoring highways between Cape Reinga and Bluff.
"We can monitor the whole state highway network and report to motorists, whereas before it was done on a regional basis," he said yesterday.
"So as you leave Auckland a VMS [electronic message] sign should tell you if there's a hold-up on the Desert Road or wherever."
Mr Parker said the Smales Farm site was chosen for its proximity to police both at Northcote and Takapuna, as well as to the motorway and the busway, which comes under the Transport Agency's oversight.
He said the centre offered plenty of room to expand operations, as would be needed when Auckland's new generation of motorway tunnels beneath Victoria Park, Waterview and Waitemata Harbour were added to the roading network.
Its emergency co-ordination room would provide facilities for direct police involvement in managing major incidents, either on the Auckland motorways or further afield.
Although Wellington and Christchurch have their own motorway control centres, Auckland would take over their functions at night.
As well as monitoring motorway cameras and operating ramp signals, the Auckland centre offers management services to local councils with links to street cameras and control of traffic lights throughout the region.
Most of those local management activities were previously operated in partnership with the councils from a former Transport Agency building in central Auckland.
Mr Parker said the new centre allowed all traffic management operations to be brought together on the one site and had a start-up staff of 50.
The centre has already begun operations ahead of today's official opening.
ROAD FACTS
* A $6 million national operations centre opens today.
* Motorists will be given information about traffic hold-ups around the country.
* It will also have links to street cameras and be able to control traffic lights.
* Auckland will take over Wellington and Christchurch functions at night.
