Roadworks completed after traffic chaos upsets Whangārei

Commute into town was still slow on Tuesday morning, but noticeably improved compared to Monday's gridlock traffic. Photo / Julia Czerwonatis

Whangārei had a taste of metropolitan traffic on Monday after roadworks along Riverside Dr brought parts of the town to a near standstill.

The commute from town to Onerahi is going back to normal again after contractors swept the site, line marked the road and lifted the temporary 50km/h speed restriction last night.

Despite Whangārei District's efforts to plan ahead, the roadworks had caused major disruptions on Monday holding up motorists across the city until the late evening.

Greg Monteith, the council's capital works and procurement manager, said during the planning of this work, they were aware of the sensitivity of Riverside Dr and how traffic congestion could build very quickly.

"We planned to undertake this works during the January school holidays as close to the start of the year as we could manage to utilise the lower traffic flows expected for this time of year. We picked Monday as this has the lightest traffic volumes of the week."

Council numbers show that 15,806 motorists commute on Riverside Dr on Mondays, significantly fewer than on peak days Thursday with 16,579 and Friday with 16,713.

Monteith also pointed out that the council had warned commuters about the upcoming works with variable message signs, and that the roadworks were carried out outside of rush hour traffic.

However, when contractors packed up at 4pm after sealing about 300m of road, traffic had clogged up and moved slow for another two to three hours.

Answering a question many frustrated commuters asked on social media, Monteith explained council didn't have access to the specialised equipment needed to carry out the roadworks at night.

Traffic jam at the Port Rd roundabout at about 5pm on Monday. Photo / John Stone

While car engines were running hot and people's groceries went off in the heat, Whangārei woman Artika Mala's day went particularly sour after she missed her 1.45pm flight down to Christchurch despite leaving town at midday to drive out to the airport.

"My son, my daughter and I wanted to fly to Christchurch for my mother's birthday party. We were meant to be at the airport at 1pm. At 1.45pm, we were at the roundabout just behind the Pohe Bridge, nowhere near the airport."

Graeme Wilson spent some time yesterday cleaning up his car, a 2002 Corvette, that had picked up gravel from Riverside Dr and was now "squeaking". He said, he and his wife were on their home to Onerahi from a long weekend and just had picked up their dogs from the kennel when they got stuck in traffic.

"The car was overheating, which it has never done before. My wife was driving, and I had the dogs on the lap because it's only a two-seater. The dogs started getting really hot and were vomiting inside the car."

The traffic on Riverside almost backed up almost Dundas Rd at 6.20pm on Monday. Photo / Mikaela Collins

Leah Greenall, Northland sales and operations manager for Gilmours Wholesale Food and Beverage, said "the traffic chaos was a nightmare".

"I was 40 minutes late to pick up my son from daycare, so it cost me an extra $40 in late fees. It took me 1 hour and 40 minutes to get from Rewa Rewa Rd to Tikipunga."

She said the Gilmours trucks were held up getting back to the depot which cost the company in wages.

"I feel they should have at least had some traffic controllers out as cars were blocking straight through lanes to get around the roundabout."

Other commuters stuck in traffic yesterday took their frustration to social media and commented on several Facebook groups about their experience with some reports of smashed windscreens.

Okara ward councillor Nicholas Connop said as someone who has sat in traffic between Onerahi and town many times he could fully sympathise with upset commuters.

He said it was a timely reminder that the route required a better alternative connection in case of an emergency, such as a king tide that flushes away the road, a landslide or a major accident.

Te Matau ā Pohe was busy for most of the day with motorists coming from both sides of Port Rd. Photo / John Stone

On his Facebook page, Connop also acknowledged road workers wearing full protective gear in the heat – the airport measured a high of 27.7C on Monday.

The bus service out to Onerahi was significantly delayed on Monday, along with some delays on other routes.

Northland Regional Council's transport manager Chris Powell said he had spoken to Citylink who had handled the situation well.

"The bus drivers were speaking to the passengers to inform them what was happening and tried their best to accommodate everyone."

Powell said bus services were back to their normal schedule on Tuesday.

As part of their Long Term Plan, council has scheduled an upgrade for Riverside Dr and Onerahi Rd in 2024/25.