Auckland rush-hour police chase: Fleeing car mounts kerb, drives on footpath to evade capture

A car attempting to evade police mounted a kerb and narrowly missed pedestrians and cars when it drove on the wrong side of a traffic queue during a dramatic two-hour police chase.

Two people were arrested after the fleeing car sparked a major police response across Auckland during the Thursday evening rush hour.

Footage was captured of the damaged white Toyota on Leonard St in Mt Wellington with the back bumper barely hanging on as it barrelled down the road.

The car is seen making a dangerous U-turn after being cornered by two unmarked police cars before it drives on the wrong side of the road.

The vehicle then mounts the footpath, narrowly missing the person recording the video as well as other vehicles.

The car continued driving down the road with the two police cars following behind.

The Eagle police helicopter can be seen circling overhead, tracking the erratic car from above.

Another witness claimed the car struck his vehicle in Parnell just after 5pm.

“I was heading southbound of Parnell Road towards the church traffic lights amongst peak traffic that was coasting slowly around 10-15 [km/h] speeds,” the man said.

“As I was coming up to a pedestrian crossing and checked to see if anyone was crossing before proceeding I noticed in my right side mirror the [the car] speeding through the median lane going the same direction I was.

“Not even a few seconds later the car sped past me and swerved the stolen vehicle into mine to avoid the cement island in the middle of the road and forced their way through around the island before proceeding to use the median lane again to speed off towards the church intersection.”

The incident began on the North Shore. Police tracked the vehicle as it travelled through Remuera towards Greenlane.

Several police vehicles were spotted across the city, as well as the police helicopter observing from above, as police began tracking a stolen vehicle around 4pm.

“The vehicle was observed driving erratically and at high speed,” police said.

“No members of the public were injured during this event, however there were several close calls with other road users.”

A witness earlier said they saw about 30 police cars speeding down Shore Rd in Parnell shortly before 5.30pm.

Several police officers were reportedly hiding in Hobson Circle in Remuera with spikes laid out but the vehicle they were waiting for never came.

A police spokesperson said the vehicle’s tyres were spiked on Ireland Rd in Mt Wellington and two people were taken into custody without incident at about 6pm.

Rachel Maher is an Auckland-based reporter who covers breaking news. She has worked for the Herald since 2022.