Aucklanders returning from the north along State Highway 1 face heavy traffic from 11am to 8pm, while those braving the journey from the south would be best to avoid the period from 10am to 7pm.
Even yesterday those returning to the City of Sails faced long delays well before reaching the motorway network, with stretches of SH2 gridlocked from Mangatawhiri.
Further disruptions were caused by a scrub fire off Lambie Drive near Manukau, South Auckland, which temporarily closed parts of State Highway 20.
Once in the city too Aucklanders will be confronted by a post-Christmas maze of orange traffic cone and one-lane roads as 33 city centre streets are poised to be disrupted by roadworks.
Some areas of the CBD have already been shut off in recent days - including part of Victoria St - and clogged by gridlock.
For those making their holiday returns today NZTA has released a Holiday Planner, that uses information from last year to predict the best - and worst - time to brave the commute home.
Green indicates free-flowing traffic, orange shows "busy" and red "heaviest" congestion.
During daytime hours some of the main holiday routes are predicted to be largely in orange and red tomorrow.
NZTA says the predictions are subject to change based on weather and other factors like crashes, and commuters should also check its Journey Planner tool for real-time information. Below are the Holiday Planner predictions for today and tomorrow.
Sunday, January 5
• Approaching Auckland from the north:
Aucklanders heading south from Whangārei will strike heavier congestion from about 10.30am up until around 8pm. During that period, the red zone or busiest period is predicted to be from noon until 7pm.
The stretch between Wellsford and Puhoi will be busy from 10am until 9pm, with particularly heavy congestion between 11am and around 8pm.
• Driving towards Auckland from the south
Those approaching Auckland from the south have an even smaller window to avoid congestion. State Highway 1 around Takanini is predicted to be busy from 9am until 8pm, with "heavy" traffic expected from 10am until 7pm.
SH1 south of Cambridge will be busy from 11am-6pm, and heaviest from noon until about 5pm.
• Coming from the Coromandel/Bay of Plenty
State Highway 2 (East of SH1/SH2 interchange) is predicted to get busy from 11am to 8pm, with heavy congestion from about 2pm until 7pm.
SH2 between Tauranga and Katikati will be busy for those heading westward from 9am-3.30pm, and heavy from about 11.30am to 1pm.
• Wellington
Wellingtonians face some bad traffic in their commute home. SH1 on the Kapiti Coast between Peka Peka and Otaki is likely to be congested from 10am until 6pm, and in the "red zone" from 1pm until 4pm.
