Traffic building up on the Auckland Harbour Bridge ahead of Easter weekend. Photo: RNZ / Marika Khabazi
Traffic building up on the Auckland Harbour Bridge ahead of Easter weekend.
New Zealanders are beginning to take to the road as the long Easter weekend kicks off.
Most motorways leading out of Auckland and to the Auckland Airport are congested as motorists begin their holidays.
Auckland Transport is urging drivers to be safe and plan ahead, with strong winds and rain creating hazards on the roads.
Auckland commuters are also being affected, with all of Thursday's ferry services cancelled and congestion in both directions through Ellerslie.
In Waikato, strong winds caused by ex-cyclone Tam have toppled trees on some roads, including State Highway 29 in Te Poi. Although it closed the highway for a time, it has now reopened.
Travellers are reporting high winds creating scary driving conditions, and several crashes, on SH29 over the Kaimai range.
On a local social media page dedicated to Bay of Plenty traffic information, Brett Hogue said he saw two caravans on their sides.
Amanda Swanepoel had also travelled over the Kaimai range and said her whole car was shaking from the wind.
Silverdale has lost power at about 2pm on Thursday. Traffic lights are out, Z gas station is unable to provide fuel. Photo: RNZ / Calvin Samuel
Silverdale has lost power at about 2pm on Thursday. Traffic lights are out, Z gas station is unable to provide fuel.
A key bridge on State Highway 1 across the Waihou River was blocked by floodwaters, and inundation had forced a stretch of State Highway 11 running along Paihia's coast to close.
A truck on its side on SH1 heading north before Kaiwaka on Thursday. Photo: Supplied / Juliet Lagan
Waipa Networks in Waikato said it was experiencing multiple outages across the network caused by the wind and severe weather.
Conditions were making it much harder for their repair teams to complete their work and some outages may take longer than usual to repair, they said.
The outages affect Airport Road, Duncan Road, Hautapu Road, Peake Road, Pencarrow Road, and parts of State Highway 1 and 3.
Hamilton Airport has not been affected.
In the city of sails, Auckland Transport said local roads were clear. Meanwhile, highways out of the city were maintaining a steady flow of traffic as a number of Aucklanders set out to beat the rush hour traffic for an early start to the weekend.
State Highway 20A was particularly busy on the way to Auckland Airport, a notice on the airport's website warning it was running out of carparks.
Big swells crash onto State Highway 11 in Paihia. Photo: RNZ / Peter de Graaf
SH25 MANAIA, COROMANDEL PENINSULA - 6:00PM
— NZ Transport Agency - Waikato & Bay of Plenty (@nztawbop) April 17, 2025
Due to flooding #SH25 at Manaia, Coromandel Peninsula, is affected. Please delay your journey or consider an alternative route. Please do not drive into flooded areas of roads. ^ND pic.twitter.com/g8V2Tbg5ci
NZ Transport Agency is warning that there is flooding on State Highway 25 at Manaia on the Coromandel Peninsula.
Motorists should delay their journeys or consider an alternative route, it said.
The flooding was likely to get worse as high tide approached at 11.30pm, it said.
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