“Sadly, the male rider has sustained fatal injuries and died at the scene.”
The motorway was closed while the Serious Crash Unit investigated overnight.
The lanes reopened shortly before 5am.
A witness at the scene said traffic attenuator trucks had established a roadblock on the motorway, diverting all traffic off at East Tamaki. Vehicles already on the motorway were slowly turned around and escorted back to the Ōtara on-ramp.
A detective was seen taking a statement from a Greenstone TV camera operator who was filming with motorway patrol units for a new series of Motorway Patrol at the time of the incident. Nearby, another officer spoke with colleagues while holding a speed radar device.
A police photographer completed a walkthrough of the scene as the Serious Crash Unit began its investigation alongside NZTA staff.
A St John spokesperson said an ambulance and an operations manager vehicle were sent to the incident. All further enquiries were directed to the police.
Further south, a cyclist has died in an early-morning crash on State Highway 2 in Dannevirke.
The cyclist was unable to be revived at the scene, and enquiries into the crash are now underway.
In Canterbury, an e-scooter rider was struck by an oncoming train overnight.
The collision, which occurred around 3.30am on Lincoln Rd in Addington, saw the Serious Crash Unit called out with road closures in place.
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