Project details

Squadron Drive Interchange

This interchange has ramps for motorists travelling to and from the North Shore and also gives local access into Hobsonville and the new Hobsonville Point housing development. The new cyclist and pedestrian path on the Upper Harbour Bridge extends over the motorway via the new Squadron Drive Bridge to a signalised intersection with Buckley Avenue.

Clarks Lane Bridge

An art bridge acts as a gateway on the motorway route and gives cyclist and pedestrian access over the new motorway.

Brigham Creek Road Interchange with SH18

This interchange provides access on and off the motorway in all directions and forms the connection between Kumeu (in Rodney) and the North Shore via Brigham Creek Road.

Sinton Road Extension

A new link road has been built to connect local traffic to the Brigham Creek Road Interchange.

Trig Road Interchange

This interchange has ramps for motorists travelling to and from the North Shore.

Hobsonville Road Interchange (Westgate)

An interchange incorporating a flyover bridge over the new extension of SH16 connects the existing SH16 with the new SH18 motorway.  This interchange replaces the intersection of Hobsonville Road and the Northwestern Motorway (SH16).

Four on and off-ramps give easy connections to Hobsonville Road and a link road will provide access to the planned development opposite the Westgate shopping centre.  With the new motorway open, SH18 Hobsonville Road becomes a local road managed by the Auckland Transport.  New facilities for pedestrians and cyclists give links across the motorway from Massey East to Massey West at Hobsonville Road.

SH16 extension roundabout with Brigham Creek Road

A new roundabout connects the new Northwestern Motorway extension, Brigham Creek Road and Fred Taylor Drive.  Fred Taylor Drive (old SH16) becomes a local road managed by Auckland Transport.

Heritage buildings

Three heritage buildings along Clarks Lane and Brigham Creek Road have been relocated in partnership with the Heritage New Zealand (formerly the NZ Historic Places Trust) and the former Waitakere City Council. Sinton House and Ockleston House had to be demolished as they were unable to be relocated. 

Records of all historic properties have been kept and the ‘Sinton Windows’ artwork has been designed to reflect the heritage of the original Sinton homestead. The artwork incorporates some of the original windows salvaged from the house and sits alongside Clarks Lane Bridge near the relocated houses in Clarks Lane.

Urban design

The NZ Transport Agency worked closely with the former Waitakere City Council to incorporate urban design elements, including native planting, into the motorway design.

SH16 Brigham Creek Extension – ‘The Green Route’

• Running between Hobsonville Road and Brigham Creek Road, the Green Route features extensive plantings of native flaxes along with ‘green walls’ planted with ferns, grasses, climbers and hanging plants. Stormwater wetlands have plantings of reeds, flaxes and cabbage trees to maintain and enhance the natural environment.

SH18 Hobsonville Deviation – ‘The Gallery Route’

• Running between Hobsonville Road and Squadron Drive, the Gallery Route features plantings of manuka and totara.

Sinton Windows

• In an initiative led by the former Waitakere City Council, a major artwork by Waitakere artist John Radford takes pride of place alongside the Clarks Lane Bridge. It incorporates some of the original windows from the Sinton homestead.

Clarks Lane Bridge

• This shared pedestrian and cyclist bridge is a bright yellow gateway structure that can be seen from the motorway as motorists enter West Auckland from the North Shore.
• The striking 60-metre long structure is the centrepiece of the urban design programme for the motorway.

Noise walls

• Noise walls form one of the strong visual elements of the project and are sited on Hobsonville Road near Westgate, Squadron Drive, Sinton Road, Trig Road and Brigham Creek Road/SH16
• The walls are erected alongside the motorway lanes in certain areas to reduce noise from the motorway on the surrounding businesses and residences
• The walls are made of wood which are painted orange
• The walls feature tread relief patterns by artist Jeff Thomson

Environment

• Native trees and shrubs have been planted along the route. Seeds have been eco-sourced from nearby areas and extensive planting revegetates the motorway route and minimises maintenance.
• Run-off from the motorway is caught and filtered by sedimentation ponds.
• Limiting major earthworks to the summer months helped to minimise the disturbance to the environment surrounding the motorway by reducing the risk of erosion and sediment run-off.
• Noise walls and landscaped earth mounds reduce noise from the new motorway on neighbouring properties.