Subscribe to RSSPM Opens Vic Tunnel Saturday
The prime minister officially opens Victoria Park tunnel in a ribbon cutting ceremony early next Saturday morning, during the first week of the official election campaign.
Vocxtoria park tunnel construction has been going on for ever!
Then a thousand people who have already got tickets will have the chance to walk through the 450 metre-long tunnel. The free tickets were limited because of the capacity and safety issues but there are none left.
NZTA will open two of the Victoria Park Tunnel’s three lanes to traffic on Monday, November 7, at the end of a week of intensive work to divert northbound motorway lanes underground from the existing Victoria Park flyover.
There will be extensive road works to get the tunnel ready for what will be the first part of a staged commissioning of the $340 million project that will increase motorway capacity and ease congestion between the Auckland Harbour Bridge and Central Motorway Junction when work is finally completed next March.
Drivers will have to wait until January to start to enjoy the benefits of the project.
That’s when NZTA reconfigures the Victoria Park flyover for four lanes of southbound traffic – two going off to the Auckland CBD and the Northwestern Motorway and two heading south on State Highway 1.
During the week that follows, contractors will be busy with final work to have the tunnel and the motorway approaches to it ready for traffic on November 7.
“Switching motorway traffic to the tunnel will be complicated, and there will be disruption for drivers during the day and at night as we complete this essential work,” NZTA’s Tommy Parker says.
The project will increase the capacity of State Highway 1 over 2.2km, from the Auckland Harbour Bridge to the Central Motorway Junction. The additional capacity will come from:
- A 450m tunnel under Victoria Park for three lanes of northbound traffic
- Reconfiguration of the Victoria Park flyover for two lanes of southbound traffic and two lanes heading to the CBD via Cook Street, the Port and the Northwestern Motorway.
- One additional motorway lane in each direction through St Marys Bay
- A citybound bus shoulder lane
- Upgrading the Fanshawe Street off and on ramps
- An auxiliary peak-time-only lane at the Fanshawe Street on ramp, opened and closed by moveable lane barriers
6 Comments
-half a job, thanks to the Harbour Bridge lobby
Amazing how people will purchase TICKETs to walk in motorway tunnel. Don’t they have anything better to do on a weekend, or is this a sign of how in love many Aucklanders are with their motorways?? Will see what happens when it opens to traffic for the first time, and Auckland’s inner city congestion magically “goes away” (Tui slogan here)
@Brian The tickets were free. It’s about the experience. How often do you get to walk a newly constructed major tunnel? I’m curious. I’m going!
I’ve got tickets! Probably a once in a lifetime opportunity and it’s free!
I have a e-ticket for the 13:30 session that I can’t use — email me at james at pole dot net dot nz if you want it.
Really nice tunnel! Wish we could have another and demolish the flyover…