Gridlock: Traffic woes for Te Ngae Rd commuters

Public transport is delayed and traffic is at a crawl as road works continue to cause issues for Te Ngae Rd commuters.

A Rotorua public transport worker, who wanted to remain anonymous, said he was running 40 minutes late this morning.

He said he wasn't sure what the problem was but it was possibly the change to the left-hand turn into Sala St, which was blocked off from today.

"Traffic is just piled up and gridlocked. It'll be well past the airport by now for sure.

"Something needs to be done as we can't have this every day," he said.

Traffic built up on Te Ngae Rd this morning. Photo / Andrew Warner

Multiple road work sites are active between Sala St and Iles Rd this week as part of the Eastern Corridor Stage One project.

SH30 ROTORUA Want to know what work is happening on SH30/Te Ngae Road this week? Check out our weekly traffic...

Posted by Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency Waikato BoP on Sunday, November 1, 2020

NZ Transport Agency said motorists could expect significant delays particularly at the Tarawera Rd and Sala St intersections with Te Ngae Rd.

Traffic near the Tarawera and Te Ngae Rd intersection this morning. Photo / Andrew Warner

A new temporary roundabout layout is in place at the Tarawera and Te Ngae Rd intersection as contractors transform the existing roundabout into a signalised intersection.

Northbound traffic on Sala St is down to one lane at the intersection with Te Ngae Rd due to the construction of a new city-bound slip lane.

Eastbound traffic on Te Ngae Rd may be down to one lane during the day and the left-turn slip lane from Te Ngae Rd into Sala St will be closed until early December.