Wellington risks grinding to a halt this morning as a 24-hour train strike forces tens of thousands of people to find another way to work.
Traffic is now congested on a number of sections across Wellington's motorway heading into early morning rush hour.
By 6.45am the New Zealand Transport Agency said SH1 was crawling between Paekakariki to Pukerua Bay, at the Tawa-Johnsonville interchange and along Aotea Quay.
It was also packed at Melling and the interchanges at Dowse and Petone on SH2.
A spokesperson said it is definitely an unusual amount of traffic for this early in the morning.
Trains are at a stand-still in the capital with more than 400 rail workers on a 24-hour strike.
Negotiations between the Rail and Maritime Union and Transdev are at boiling point.
Thirty thousand train passengers will have to find other ways get in and out of the city.
Workers employed by Transdev Wellington and Hyundai Rotem on Wellington's passenger rail network voted overwhelmingly in favour of stopping work for 24 hours from 2am on Thursday to protest the breakdown of contract talks.
There will be no train services and Metlink, which runs the region's public transport network, say there will be no replacement buses either. On a regular weekday in Wellington more than 30,000 passenger journeys are by train.
The strike will be the biggest to hit Wellington's rail system since 1994.
The strike also poses a challenge for high school students facing exams today.
Wellington Chamber of Commerce CEO John Milford, said it will cause disruption, but businesses have plans in place.
He said that includes working from home and carpooling.
Milford said businesses put in place the ability to work from home after last year's earthquake.
Meanwhile, Cyclists are being offered free coffee as a sweetener to avoid the congestion.
Read more: Plans for Wellington congestion unveiled
Bicycle Junction, a Wellington bike shop and cafe, will be set-up under the sails on the waterfront with free coffee from 7am.
It says the coffee's for anyone who rides their bike and avoids "trainageddon".
Wellington Airport said people should allow for extra time to get to the airport while the strike is on.
Wellington City Council's parking services manager Brendan Jelley says that since the Kaikoura earthquake the reduction in off-street parks has further increased the pressure on the council's limited on-street spaces.
"People wanting to park for longer than two hours should look for off-street options or use coupon parking on the fringes of the city."
His advice is to not bring a car into Wellington if you don't have pre-arranged parking. On the Wellington LIVE Facebook and Metlink Facebook pages, there were a number of unhappy commuters, who will work from home or look to travel in earlier by car.
In reply to one commuter's question about car parking, Greater Wellington Regional Council - who run Metlink - advised to carpool.
Hutt South MP Chris Bishop even took to Facebook offering people a life into Wellington this morning:
"Who needs a lift? No trains and buses tomorrow and limited parking in town. I'll be leaving Petone at 6.15am so if you'd like a lift please message me. First in first served. I have four spaces. Going from Richmond St Petone to Parliament. I can pick people up from Petone or you can meet at my place."
One commuter, Erin Wellum, said, "I hope the negotiations work out for the rail workers and they get to keep their current contract conditions but I can't help feeling for the people who won't get paid at all if they can't get in to work on Thursday."
In response to a question about refunding a day from regular users' monthly passes, GWRC said: "Sorry but our policy is that we are unable to provide refunds for events beyond our control, such as strikes."
Students sitting exams need to factor train cancellations and road congestion into their travel plans - as should people travelling to Wellington Hospital or Wellington airport. Rubbish collection in the city's southern suburbs will be done earlier in the morning than normal, WCC say.
- NZN, Staff reporter
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