Queues of New Year's Eve traffic are beginning to build around the country.

Christchurch's Boxing Day aftershocks and the recent wet weather have seen more than 1000 claims lodged with the Earthquake Commission.

Police are setting a new trap for speeding drivers who slam on their brakes at the last minute for roadside speed cameras. The point-to-point cameras record the time a car takes to travel between two points.

Police have urged motorists travelling north from Wellington to exercise patience in 'extremely heavy' traffic today. Two people have so far been killed on NZ's roads since the official start of the holiday road toll period.

The festive season is a time of excess. But as the country’s top traffic officer Paula Rose tells Alan Perrott, there is little cheer in counting its cost.

Speeds of hundreds of kilometres an hour now common on rail network.