Waikato Herald
  • Waikato Herald home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Rural
  • Lifestyle
  • Lotto results

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Lifestyle
  • Lotto results

Locations

  • Hamilton
  • Coromandel & Hauraki
  • Matamata & Piako
  • Cambridge
  • Te Awamutu
  • Tokoroa & South Waikato
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Weather

  • Thames
  • Hamilton
  • Tokoroa
  • Taumarunui
  • Taupō

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 / Waikato News

Roadworks expected to cause delays around holiday hotspots

By Hamish Cardwell
RNZ·
20 Dec, 2020 06:16 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

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

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save
    Share this article
Holidaymakers are warned to factor in extra time for road works-related delays all over New Zealand this summer. Photo / Bevan Conley, File

Holidaymakers are warned to factor in extra time for road works-related delays all over New Zealand this summer. Photo / Bevan Conley, File

From RNZ

Motorists should expect delays travelling to holiday hotspots, with another big year of summer roadworks planned.

More than 2000 workers will be sweating it out across about 2500 sites nationwide.

READ MORE:
• Eagle helicopter, police cars, Fire and Emergency truck used to catch wanted
man
• Drink-driver 'incredibly lucky' after car launched 80m into tree
• Boy racer cars impounded after Wellington police covert operation
• Incident on Northwestern Motorway, diversions in place

Last year's maintenance programme was the largest ever, with 10 per cent of the roading network renewed or repaired.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

This year it is 8.5 per cent - that is nearly 2000km of refreshed roads - the equivalent of repaving a two-lane road from Picton to Bluff.

PLAN AHEAD: Check details of Auckland's overnight motorway roadwork closures planned over the coming holiday period (20-22 Dec and 06-09 Jan) here: https://t.co/ZhEZnB7jq6 and plan your late night journey in advance. ^MF pic.twitter.com/glCOimn9TM

— Waka Kotahi NZTA Auckland & Northland (@WakaKotahiAkNth) December 20, 2020

Workers will down tools from December 23 until January 5 but some speed restrictions will remain at major site works.

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency Systems Manager Mark Owen predicted even heavier traffic than usual with New Zealanders stuck holidaying at home.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
One frequent bottleneck at the start of holiday periods, the SH1 toll road near Johnstones Hill tunnels near Puhoi. Photo / Michael Craig, File
One frequent bottleneck at the start of holiday periods, the SH1 toll road near Johnstones Hill tunnels near Puhoi. Photo / Michael Craig, File

"I think we'll find that a lot more people will be travelling around.

"Obviously we haven't got the overseas tourists, but a lot of New Zealanders [are] pretty adventurous, they'll want to get out this summer and enjoy the beautiful weather and go and visit places that they haven't maybe been before.

"So we're expecting there will be a lot of movement over the next month or so as people travel around New Zealand."

Large works are planned for Northland, the lower half of the South Island and Bay of Plenty, but Waikato is getting the lion's share with 20 per cent of the total.

Waikato District Mayor Allan Sanson said the region was also expecting huge amounts of traffic.

He said Raglan - with a permanent population of 3500 - was expecting 170,000 visitors next month.

"I would suggest the Coromandel is probably going to be equally as endowed with a lot of people travelling that normally may travel overseas."

Sanson said people travelling to Coromandel should add an extra hour and a half - or more - to their journey time.

Kaipara Mayor Dr Jason Smith said Northland's roads were the worst in the country and fixing them was its residents' top priority.

Traffic bedlam between Pakaraka Straights and Otiria Stream bridge in Moerewa. Photo / Peter de Graaf, File
Traffic bedlam between Pakaraka Straights and Otiria Stream bridge in Moerewa. Photo / Peter de Graaf, File

He said it made the economic speedbump of roadwork delays ultimately worth it.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"The people of Northland, seeing road cones, while they may be frustrated and delayed they're also going, 'yeah, we need these roads to be at the same standard as everyone else's roads'.

"So they're happy to take the medicine of the frustrating time with the road cones."

The $127 million being spent on repairs this year maxes out Waka Kotahi's maintenance budget.

But new Transport Minister Michael Wood said the Government's substantially boosted the money available - with $2.4 billion over three years up from $1.6b under the previous government.

"That's about 50 per cent lift, so we've got a lot of extra capacity there to be dealing with maintenance.

"But we are dealing with a backlog ... and Waka Kotahi [is] moving as quickly as [it] can to meet that."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Wood said road users should heed the lessons from the team of five million during Covid and be kind to each other and keep each other safe.

"The saddest part of my week every week as Minister of Transport is, in my weekend bag, I get a readout of the New Zealanders who have lost their lives on the road in the week that's gone by."

Transport Minister Michael Wood. Photo / George Novak, File
Transport Minister Michael Wood. Photo / George Novak, File

Owen said ultimately the maintenance made the roads safer.

He had a plea for drivers.

"Please just be patient. Slow down if you're going through roadwork sites - we've had complaints about drivers speeding through - and this just creates all sorts of problems, it puts workers at risk [and] can affect the quality of the final surface.

"These workers are working hard and they want to go home safely at the end of the day."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The agency suggested motorists check out its interactive holiday journeys map to avoid the worst congestion.

Save
    Share this article

Latest from Waikato News

Waikato Herald

'Ultimate sacrifice': Capsized jetskiier died after giving lifejacket to struggling brother

Sport

Waikato boxers return from Australian tournament with big medal haul

Sport

Montague becomes first Kiwi woman to sign with UFC


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Waikato News

'Ultimate sacrifice': Capsized jetskiier died after giving lifejacket to struggling brother
Waikato Herald

'Ultimate sacrifice': Capsized jetskiier died after giving lifejacket to struggling brother

Two brothers headed out on a jetski. Only one came back alive.

23 Jul 05:00 AM
Waikato boxers return from Australian tournament with big medal haul
Sport

Waikato boxers return from Australian tournament with big medal haul

23 Jul 01:42 AM
Montague becomes first Kiwi woman to sign with UFC
Sport

Montague becomes first Kiwi woman to sign with UFC

23 Jul 01:40 AM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
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
  • Waikato Herald e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Waikato Herald
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • 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
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP