Prime Minister, Rt Hon Chris Hipkins and Associate Minister of Transport, Hon Kiri Allan, to mark the completion of the Pūhoi to Warkworth section of Ara Tūhono, and Te Honohono ki Tai Road in Warkworth.
The Ara Tūhono Pūhoi to Warkworth motorway is expected to be open to traffic by Monday morning.
Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency has been cagey about the exact day and time the new 18.5km motorway will open to motorists to prevent traffic disruption, but the Weekend Herald understands traffic will be flowing by Monday.
When the motorway does open, it will chop 11 minutes off the drive north for about 35,000 vehicles a day and provide motorists with a smoother and safer journey to the dangerous section of SH1 it replaces.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins gave it the “Chippy chop” with a pair of golden scissors at a ribbon-cutting ceremony yesterday morning, officially extending the State Highway he called the “main lifeline” between Auckland and Northland.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins and Associate Transport Minister Kiri Allan at the opening ceremony for the Ara Tuhono Puhoi to Warkworth motorway. Photo by Dean Purcell
He was accompanied by Associate Transport Minister Kiri Allan to mark the completion of the new section of SH1 and the $62 million Te Honohono ki Tai Matakana Link Rd that avoids Warkworth’s infamous Hill St intersection.
After cutting the ribbon, Hipkins said it was wrong of Labour to call it the “holiday highway”.
Over the years, the project has been opposed and mocked by Labour as a low-value “holiday highway” and was started by the last National government as part of its “Roads of National Significance” programme.
Illustration / Rod Emmerson
Hipkins said it was not wrong to criticise all of the road funding going into the Roads of National Significance and away from maintenance and local roads.
“The reality is we need to do both. We need to invest in new roads but also make sure we are maintaining the existing roads,” he said.
Asked if National should be opening the motorway when they started it and Labour criticised it, Hipkins said “and we funded it”.
“There are lots of people who will want to claim credit for this but the fundamental, big important question is let’s get these projects moving.”
The new motorway is due to be open to motorists by Monday. Photo / Supplied
The Prime Minister said the new motorway is the most significant new road since Transmission Gully, which has transformed travel in and out of Wellington where he’s the MP for Rimutaka.
National’s transport spokesman Simeon Brown accused Labour ministers of “shamelessly” celebrating the completion of a project started by National after calling it a discredited “holiday highway”.
He welcomed the opening, saying it is a big win for the Auckland and Northland region and pleased to see it open after years of delays.
The motorway, which took nearly seven years to build, was initially due to open in the summer of 2021/22 and then at Queen’s Birthday weekend last year, but the impact of Covid pushed out the opening date by a further 12 months.
Kiri Allan called it an exciting day for local communities and Northland.
“This route is vital for the economy and will provide more predictable, consistent and reliable travel and better access to markets in Northland and to export ports at Auckland and Tauranga. That’s important for businesses to be able to plan their logistics,” she said.
Waka Kotahi general manager transport services Brett Gliddon said the motorway has been built to the highest safety standards and strengthens the resilience of the roading network between Auckland and Northland.
The new 1.35km Matakana Link Rd will open at the same time as the new motorway. Photo / Auckland Transport
Motorists can expect to see work continuing around the motorway for several months, including work on the Pūhoi on and off-ramps, some earthworks, seasonal planting and final clean-up of work areas, he said.
“We understand why people are excited – Ara Tūhono Pūhoi to Warkworth is a stunning piece of infrastructure, but there is plenty of time to enjoy it,” Gliddon said.
Auckland Transport chief executive Dean Kimpton said the 1.35km Matakana Link Rd, just south of the new roundabout at the end of the new motorway at the Warkworth end, will bring transformational changes to Rodney.
