Traffic gridlock bites commuters
Auckland commuters were stuck in gridlocked traffic as the closure of the Curran St on-ramp saw queues snake through Ponsonby. Traffic was reduced to a crawl along Jervois Rd, College Hill Shelley Beach Rd and Beaumont St, with cars at a standstill along Franklin Rd as motorists grew increasingly frustrated.
Trafficwas heaving along the motorway and through Westhaven marina, with a NZTA camera showing lengthy queues along the Northern motorway from Onewa Rd.
The never-ending peak came after NZTA was forced to close half of the Auckland Harbour Bridge to make urgent repairs to a damaged strut after two truck crashes closed four lanes on Friday.
It followed a hellish morning commute for many, with traffic crawling across parts of the motorway network.
Traffic was heavy northbound from Greenlane through to the Harbour Bridge, with commuters facing an ever-growing wait to get home.
Waka Kotahi/NZTA’s bus priority system on State Highway 1 northbound to the Auckland Harbour Bridge, meant the Curran St on-ramp was closed, clogging up roads throughout Ponsonby.
AT said the bus priority system would allow buses easier access the SH1 northbound on-ramp at Fanshawe St via a priority lane, reducing congestion.
This bus priority system will merge with other traffic near the closed Curran St on-ramp.
The closure was wreaking havoc throughout Ponsonby, with traffic snaking up College Hill and around the surrounding central streets.
Yesterday the AA said while the delays were heavy they weren’t a patch on Friday’s carnage.
But traffic had stayed very heavy until well after the normal morning rush-hour.
Even at 10.30am, it was taking nearly half an hour to get into the CBD from Albany.
The hefty delays have prompted NZTA to ask motorists who have only come out of the city’s second lockdown three weeks ago to consider staying home or travelling outside peak times.
While a lot of commuters were suffering, it could have been worse.
The AA said it was clear a lot of people had got the message and were changing the time they travelled, the route they usually took, or were working from home today.
Waka Kotahi/NZTA’s senior journey manager Neil Walker said the four lanes’ continued closure, for what is likely several weeks, would cause “significant disruption” to many commuters.
“If you must travel, avoid peak times in the morning and evening and allow extra time for your journey,” he said.
“Heavy congestion and delays are expected on both sides of the bridge as well as other state highways and local roads.”
Motorists were encouraged to instead take the Western Ring Route, but this route would be especially busy as only half of the normal capacity can now travel across the Auckland Harbour Bridge.