NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Ask Phoebe: Safety the main factor for motorway merging

NZ Herald
21 Jul, 2014 05:00 PM3 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

A vehicle joining the motorway from an on-ramp is obliged (must, not should) to give way to traffic on the motorway. Photo / Dean Purcell

A vehicle joining the motorway from an on-ramp is obliged (must, not should) to give way to traffic on the motorway. Photo / Dean Purcell

Drivers entering from an on-ramp do not have the right of way.

Please could you tell me who is in the right when you are on the motorway in the left hand lane and traffic is joining from an on-ramp and coming into your lane. I believe I have right of way and they should slow down and merge in between traffic, but no, I often have people who push towards me and let me know they are not pleased. It has got so bad I now make sure I am never in that lane. Barb Litherland, North Shore.

Where the car entering the motorway system has to cross a dotted line the implication is that it is changing lanes and should give the same respect to vehicles already using the motorway lane as is due to other users in any lane-changing manoeuvre.

Basically, the on-ramp vehicle has no rights to claim space in the motorway lane if it in any way affects the safety of other road users. This would include entering the safe stopping distance in front of any other car.

Of course, it is good if the motorway driver can be courteous and adjust his speed to enable on-ramp traffic to enter conveniently but there are times, particularly in dense fast traffic, where this is not safe and may also initiate flow irregularity and tailbacks.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

That is the general reading of the situation, but a spokesman for the Transport Agency is even more emphatic. He says that a vehicle joining the motorway from an on-ramp is changing lanes when it crosses the dotted continuity line. It is therefore obliged (must, not should) to give way to traffic on the motorway.

And in regard to courtesy, all drivers are required to drive safely and with consideration for other road users. In a merging situation, it places an obligation on drivers on the motorway to adjust their speed and position, if necessary, to allow on-ramp traffic to merge. So it is really a bit more than a matter of courtesy, but this has to be weighed against the duty of drivers on the on-ramp to give way if it is not feasible for the motorway traffic to make space.

In regard to Milford Terrace, David Verran, team leader at the Central Auckland Research Centre, Auckland Libraries, says according to street directories Robert Sloan lived at Seaview Rd in Milford and not Milford Terrace, from at least 1924. In fact, Mr Verran can't find a Milford Terrace at that time. Seaview Rd is just a short walk on the rise from the Milford shops, where the steam tram called from 1910 to 1927. And Gavin Sheehan suggests that the location of Milford Terrace is possibly Frater Rd, off Milford Rd. It was formerly known as Milford Avenue, but was renamed some time between 1916 and 1920. And Tony Marshall wonders if Papanui Rd might have been renamed after the end of WWI? Might it have become Lake Rd, Hurstmere Rd or Kitchener Rd? And therefore, might Milford Terrace have been one of the streets running from one or other of these roads to the beach?

Tell us
Do you have a question for Phoebe? It can be about transport or any Auckland issue. Email askphoebe@nzherald.co.nz

Discover more

New Zealand

Ask Phoebe: Crashes drop after give-way rule change

02 Jul 05:00 PM
New Zealand

Ask Phoebe: What owners get for their annual dog licence fees

07 Jul 05:30 PM
New Zealand

Ask Phoebe: Smart meters are here - like it or not

09 Jul 05:00 PM
New Zealand

Ask Phoebe: How Auckland landmarks got their names

14 Jul 05:00 PM
Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

Auckland

Woman traumatised after alleged gang rape by men she met at Ponsonby bar, two charged

02 Jul 05:31 AM
Premium
Politics

Parent Boost visa sparks warning of ‘uncertainty’ over migrant numbers, health system impact

02 Jul 05:29 AM
New Zealand|crime

Migrant worker allegedly beaten for demanding unpaid wages, man faces serious assault charge

02 Jul 05:22 AM

There’s more to Hawai‘i than beaches and buffets – here’s how to see it differently

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from New Zealand

Woman traumatised after alleged gang rape by men she met at Ponsonby bar, two charged

Woman traumatised after alleged gang rape by men she met at Ponsonby bar, two charged

02 Jul 05:31 AM

The men were granted bail and have a curfew from 7pm to 7am.

Premium
Parent Boost visa sparks warning of ‘uncertainty’ over migrant numbers, health system impact

Parent Boost visa sparks warning of ‘uncertainty’ over migrant numbers, health system impact

02 Jul 05:29 AM
Migrant worker allegedly beaten for demanding unpaid wages, man faces serious assault charge

Migrant worker allegedly beaten for demanding unpaid wages, man faces serious assault charge

02 Jul 05:22 AM
From the theatre to a line mechanic: Hastings woman aims to inspire women into electrical trade

From the theatre to a line mechanic: Hastings woman aims to inspire women into electrical trade

02 Jul 04:05 AM
From early mornings to easy living
sponsored

From early mornings to easy living

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP