Transmission Gully 110km speed limit to begin Monday

Wellington’s Transmission Gully highway will increase to a 110km/h speed limit from Monday, the Transport Minister has announced.

The increase has long been debated, and comes after public consultation found more than 90% support for an increase.

The new speed limit will take effect from 12.01am on Monday, February 16.

“The new higher speed limit applies to the 27km section of State Highway 1 between the Linden and Paekākāriki interchanges, which is currently posted at 100km/h,“ Transport Minister Chris Bishop said.

Heavy vehicles and vehicles towing trailers will continue to have a 90km/h limit.

Raumati Straights, the 4.6km stretch between Transmission Gully and the Kāpiti Expressway, will remain at 100km/h.

It was consulted on at the same time as Transmission Gully, but Bishop said that due to constraints such as the rail line and proximity to Queen Elizabeth Park, it was not built to the same design and safety standards as other sections of the road.

“Technical assessments determined that this section did not meet the minimum safety and design requirements for a 110km/h speed limit,” Bishop said.

Motorists have faced a summer of disruption on the $1.25 billion highway, after the NZ Transport Agency (NZTA) was forced to rebuild kilometres of the road despite it only opening in 2022.

Of those who submitted on the speed limit change, 92% supported an increase and only 5% were against. The rest had mixed views or were unsure, figures released under the Official Information Act revealed.

Plans for Transmission Gully stretch back more than 100 years. Construction officially began in September 2014, when former Prime Minister John Key turned the first soil on the project.

Former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern opened the highway in March 2022, despite it being technically unfinished at the time.

Ethan Manera is a Wellington-based journalist covering Wellington issues, local politics and business in the capital. He can be emailed at ethan.manera@nzme.co.nz.