In the lead-up to Christmas and the New Year, and the traditional build-up of holiday traffic, the New Zealand Transport Agency has released a 'Holiday Hotspots' website.
For Hawke's Bay the hotspot highway is SH5 between Napier and Taupo.
Before the traffic turns heavy, NZTA contractors are finishing off seal repairs at various sites along both SH5 and SH2 north of Napier and are aiming to have the stretches "returned to normal" by Christmas, NZTA journey manager Napier Oliver Postings said.
He said the 'hotspots' map was put together using data from traffic trends recorded last Christmas and New Year and shows the areas where higher than normal volumes of traffic can be expected.
"For Hawke's Bay, SH5 is our key route, and while you won't see congestion you will notice higher than more usual traffic," Mr Postings said.