Skip to main content

Auckland’s Waterview Tunnel to open

Construction work on Auckland’s US 1 billion (NZ$1.4 billion) Waterview Tunnel has been completed and the twin 2.4km-long three-lane tunnels are expected to open to traffic in early July.
June 22, 2017 Read time: 1 min

Construction work on Auckland’s US$1 billion (NZ$1.4 billion) Waterview Tunnel has been completed and the twin 2.4km-long three-lane tunnels are expected to open to traffic in early July. The tunnel is the final link in the Western Ring Route, a new 48km route linking the west of Auckland, Manukau, the city and the North Shore.

New Zealand transport minister Bridges says the Waterview Tunnel completion marks the biggest change in Auckland’s transport system since the opening of the Auckland Harbour Bridge in 1959.

Wider economic benefits are estimated to be worth US$3 million (NZ$430 million), through improved productivity and reduced travel time, and also include the creation of more than 18,000 jobs.

This latest connection in Auckland’s state highway network is expected to provide a more resilient and reliable motorway network by reducing the current dependence on State Highway 1 and the Auckland Harbour Bridge.

Related Content

  • Land of ITS opportunities
    February 6, 2012
    Geographically, Russia, the largest country in the world, is vast. So too are the opportunities for the global ITS community, which is why ITS Russia has been actively promoting the country and the opportunities that abound there
  • Auckland reduces airport journey times
    April 16, 2018
    Getting from the centre of Auckland to the city’s airport used to be fraught with unwanted stress for passengers – but a new system combining radar, Bluetooth and Wi-Fi is smoothing things over. Andrew Stone investigates. Struggling to cope with steady growth in passenger numbers and the costly traffic congestion which that can entail, New Zealand’s Auckland International Airport has deployed an innovative system that is smoothing traffic and passenger flows. The same system is also offering new, data-led
  • European ideal poses local problems for toll companies
    December 16, 2013
    Being the first organisation attempting to implement an interoperable system poses challenges and increases risk that must be managed to realise the benefits. The European Electronic Toll Service (EETS) legislation aims to avoid the problems experienced in the USA and provide road users with seamless travel across the EU but it can pose big problems for some toll operators. Take, for instance, the case of the Humber Bridge in the UK. Its case was highlighted at the recent ITS World Congress by Tim Gammons,
  • JV wins multi-billion dollar West Gate Tunnel project
    April 11, 2017
    CPB Contractors has been selected by Australian toll road operator Transurban as the preferred contractor to deliver Victoria’s multi-billion dollar West Gate Tunnel Project in a joint venture with John Holland. The West Gate Tunnel Project will address a number of critical challenges in relation to traffic, growth and liveability across Melbourne. Design and construction works include widening the West Gate Freeway from eight lanes to 12 between the M80 Ring Road and Williamstown Road, as well as bui