Going to Kaikoura? State Highway 1 has reopened to south, closing at 6 pm

The NZ Transport Agency reopened State Highway 1 south of Kaikoura just before 3 pm today after clearing numerous small slips triggered by heavy rain. The highway closes at 6 pm each night and should reopen at 7 am tomorrow, barring more slips or bad weather overnight.

The inland road to Kaikoura, Route 70, via Waiau and Mt Lyford is open 24/7.

Check the Transport Agency’s traffic and travel pages(external link) for updates.

Electronic signs at Waipara advise the state highway’s status as well as another sign north of Cheviot. If people get to Cheviot and find the state highway is closed, they can take the Leader Road to reconnect with the inland road via Waiau.

The Transport Agency thanks all drivers for taking care on the inland road, which is 30km/hour at several places with crews working near traffic, says Transport Agency Journey Manager Lee Wright.

• The inland road, Route 70 via Waiau and Mt Lyford, is open 24/7.
• The state highway’s hours are normally 7 am to 6 pm daily.

Please check this map for updates(external link).

Ways to find out what is happening on the highway network:

• NZ Transport Agency's travel and traffic page here.(external link)
• Transport Agency Canterbury West Coast(external link)  or Otago/ Southland(external link) Twitter updates
• Transport Agency Facebook South Island(external link)
• Call 0800 4 HIGHWAYS 0800 44 44 49

Easter travel advice here.(external link)