The NZ Transport Agency will re-open the Wellington Street motorway on ramp in central Auckland this Wednesday (15 December).
The Wellington Street on-ramp provides access from the Auckland CBD and Ponsonby to State Highway 1 for traffic heading north across the Auckland Harbour Bridge. It was closed in late August for three months for essential work on the southbound approach to the Victoria Park Tunnel.
The work was completed at the end of November, but the closure was extended to allow Auckland Transport to provide a pedestrian crossing across the ramp, primarily for the safety of children from the nearby Freemans Bay School.
The NZTA’s State Highways Manager for Auckland and Northland, Tommy Parker, says final preparations for re-opening the on ramp will be completed overnight tomorrow (Tuesday).
“We expect the ramp to be open to traffic from approximately 5a.m. on Wednesday morning,” he says.
Mr Parker thanks drivers for their support and co-operation during the closure.
“We’ve had a fantastic response from drivers, and their support and patience has allowed us to complete the work with the minimum of disruption to central city streets – especially during the afternoon peak when we’ve had divert traffic away from Wellington Street -
Right-turn bans implemented at the intersection of Beaumont St and Fanshawe Street as part of the Wellington Street on ramp closure will remain until mid-January. Mr Parker says these bans are still needed during ongoing works to upgrade the intersection.
He says the on ramp will be closed again as part of the final commissioning of the Victoria Park Tunnel. The project is due to be completed in 2012.
The Victoria Park Tunnel project is one of seven roads of national significance, identified by the government as essential to New Zealand’s economic prosperity. The tunnel will provide three lanes of northbound traffic and the existing Victoria Park Viaduct will be reconfigured to carry four lanes of southbound traffic. Through St Marys Bay, the motorway is being widened by one lane in each direction. There will also be a dedicated city bound bus lane.
