NZ Police release a message on safe driving this Easter. / NZ Police
Traffic is building on main state highways around the country as people get a move on their Easter weekend breaks, and police and government representatives are pleading for Kiwi drivers to be safe as the number of people dying on our roads reaches record levels.
Auckland motorways are congested as people flee the city heading north and south.
Traffic is building at Puhoi, north of Auckland, as the NZ Transport Agency had predicted.
NZTA had advised motorists travelling north that SH1 between Puhoi and Wellsford would be heaviest from 11am through to 9.30pm tonight, and again from 8am tomorrow through to 5pm.
Traffic is heavy northbound at Puhoi as people head north for Easter weekend. Photo / Google
NZTA are warning motorists to expect delays near the intersection of SH16 and Hutchinson Rd.
SH16 HELENSVILLE - CRASH - 3.30PM Expect delays near the intersection of SH16 and Hutchinson Road due to a crash. Emergency services are on-site, please take care. https://t.co/bTA6pJtlE1. ^MF pic.twitter.com/SR7qQPjt50
— Waka Kotahi NZTA Auckland & Northland (@WakaKotahiAkNth) March 29, 2018
Further north on the Kaipara Coast Highway near Makarau a Fire and Emergency spokesperson said a vehicle had rolled into a paddock this afternoon.
Closer to Whangarei a nose to tail on Riverside Dr, Parahaki, about 5pm required cars to be moved to the side of the road.
The southern motorway is congested for traffic heading southbound from Mount Wellington to Manurewa.
An NZTA spokesperson said the congestion was generally the same as after most working days but had been pretty steady traffic since about lunchtime.
"It will be busy on the Auckland motorways north and south."
The predicted hotspots had slowed traffic heading north towards Puhoi and Wellsford and on the southern motorway for motorists heading towards Takanini.
"There's been nothing unexpected," he said.
"The Transport Agency encourages people to plan ahead and try to travel outside the peak times."
In Northland, idiot drivers will be under extra scrutiny this Easter weekend, with police calling on motorists to report dangerous driving during an expected surge of traffic on the region's roads.
Inspector Wayne Ewers said more staff, and the booze bus would be out on the roads over the weekend, and police expected Thursday, Friday and Monday to be the busiest days.
Police from the Waitemata Police District would also extend their patrols into Northland, and could come as far north as the Ruakaka roundabout.
In the South Island, traffic is crawling on SH1 south of Christchurch after a car rolled earlier and blocked two lanes as Ed Sheeran fans make their way to Dunedin for the first of three concerts tonight.
NZTA had put diversions from SH1 in place at 2.30pm but the crash has now been cleared and SH1 is open again.
Oamaru Mail reporter Tyson Young sent a photo of bumper-to-bumper southbound traffic on SH1 north of Ashburton, and said it extended ''as far as the eye can see''.
"No word of a lie, it's been like this since Oamaru.''
Traffic is dense in Timaru, it ''is crawling'' through Oamaru, and in Dunedin itself people are complaining that ''it's very difficult to find a park''.
Traffic has been restricted in Bath St, owing to large numbers of people wanting to see the Ed Sheeran mural there.
Senior Sergeant Mark Donaldson, of Dunedin, said earlier today a ''considerable amount'' of traffic was also expected from Southland.
Commuters should expect "significant delays" on State Highway 1 north and once in Dunedin.
As of this morning, 100 people have died on New Zealand roads this year, up from 86 at the same time last year. In the year to date, 394 people have lost their lives, up from 325 the previous year.
This year's number of road deaths is a 56 per cent increase from 2013.
Associate Transport Minister Julie Anne Genter said it was her "top priority" to stop so many New Zealanders dying on the roads.
"I urge people to take care on the roads this Easter Weekend, and to drive responsibly," she said.
"We know that the vast majority of serious crashes result from simple mistakes on the road.
"This highlights the importance of driving fresh and not taking risks, as well as the need for the Government to do its bit to make our roads safer."
NZ Herald graphic. Source / NZTA
A Local Government Road Safety Summit in Wellington on April 9 would enable the Government to hear from councils about how make the roads safer, Genter said.
"Road deaths are not an inevitability. The Government is looking to boost investment for safety improvements like median barriers, passing lanes and intersection upgrades on local and regional roads."
Twenty years ago, Sweden had the same level of road deaths as New Zealand, Genter said.
"Today, after heavily investing in safety, it is one of the safest countries in the world to drive in.
"If we had the same fatality rate as Sweden, 255 people who died on our roads last year would be alive today."
NZ Police assistant commissioner for road policing Sandra Venables said last Easter poor driver behaviour and speed were the main factors of crashes.
"We know the four main behaviours that contribute to road trauma are going too fast for the conditions; impairment such as fatigue, drugs or alcohol; distractions such as using a cell phone; and not wearing seatbelts."
NZ Transport Agency safety and environment director Harry Wilson said with more people on the roads it was important to plan ahead.
— Waka Kotahi NZTA Auckland & Northland (@WakaKotahiAkNth) March 26, 2018
In Bay of Plenty heavy traffic is expected over the weekend on SH29 over the Kaimai Range to Waikato, SH2 between Paeroa and Waihi, and between Tauranga and Katikati.
Coromandel traffic will be heavy on SH25 at Tairua and Kopu Bridge on Friday when people arrive and again on Monday when they head home.
SH1 north of Hamilton and south of Cambridge will also peak around similar times.
A driver and a pedestrian died in two crashes last Easter.
Ruatoria man Nelson Hari, a shearer and keen hunter, died as he walked home about 12.40am on the Sunday on a dark country road after drinking with friends.
Keen rugby player and hunter Conor Drake, 21, from Otautau, Southland, also died after his four-wheel-drive and a tanker collided on the Riverton-Wallacetown Highway, Oporo, about 7.50am later that morning.
