From Tuesday, 16 January to Friday, 24 May, contractors will build a new roundabout on State Highway 6 at the intersection of Bells and St Leonards roads.

A second roundabout is planned for the intersection of Tancred Crescent and State Highway 6 near Marlborough Airport. The timing for construction of this roundabout is still being finalised.

Drivers using the new roundabouts will find it much easier to get through these intersections. It’ll be easier to turn across oncoming traffic, and drivers entering from side roads will no longer have to wait so long to turn onto State Highway 6.

The first stage of the Bells/St Leonards roundabout works begins on Tuesday 16 January and will continue to 24 February.

The construction will create some disruption and travel delays and residents close to the work site may experience some noise, lights, and vibration while the work is being undertaken.

Contractors are making every effort to minimise disruption while the work is underway.

Drivers must take care when going through the works area and follow all temporary speed limits and directions from work crews. Traffic management is there to keep road users and road workers safe.

Road closures and detour routes

• St Leonards Road will be closed at the intersection of State Highway 6:
  • People living on St Leonards Road and wanting to travel to Blenheim will need to go up to Old Renwick Road and follow the detour to Colemans Road
  • If they are travelling towards Renwick/Nelson, they need to go via Jacksons Road.

• ONE direction will be CLOSED on State Highway 6:
  • People travelling from Nelson/Renwick to Blenheim direction will need to take a detour. The detour will be via Jacksons Road, Old Renwick Road and Colemans Road for light vehicles
  • Heavy vehicles need to go via Jacksons Road, Old Renwick Road and Hutcheson Street.

SH6 Bells Road / St Leonards Road roundabout project page

Traffic management measures will be put in place overnight on 8 January, in order to mitigate significant disruption to travel through the area while this work takes place.

The work is required to complete the new Cambridge Road Overbridge, between Bethlehem and Tauriko, and involves digging out the existing road and realigning the road level to the required height, construction of the new pavement, and installation of footpaths, road signage, road markings and landscaping.

During this time all light vehicle traffic will be required to detour using Cambridge Road East to Waihī Road. A diversion road is in use travelling alongside the main work site, please keep to the temporary speed reductions. All heavy vehicles will need to use SH29/Takitimu Drive Toll Road which will be toll exempted for heavy vehicles only during this time, the exemption will be applied automatically through the electronic tolling system.

Download map

Careful consideration has gone into recommended alternative routes for both light and heavy vehicles during the closure of a section of Moffat Road. Safety is our primary concern, especially for the residents in the affected area, including drivers, pedestrians and cyclists.

We encourage people to take the recommended routes as outlined in the map above, and to plan for additional travel time.

There will be temporary speed reductions in place while this work is undertaken. Please follow on-site traffic signage and instructions from our team.

Cambridge Road – Takitimu North Link project 

NZTA thanks motorists for their patience while we complete this essential work to keep the state highway network safe, accessible and resilient. 

Regular state highway maintenance works on Remutaka Hill resume this month, with the first night closure of the year planned for Sunday, 14 January.

Drivers need to plan ahead and factor the closure into their travel plans as the road over the Remutaka Hill will be closed to traffic from 9 pm, Sunday, 14 January to 4 am, Monday, 15 January

Access to the route will be strictly limited. However, escorted crossings can be reserved for people who have booked in advance.

Bookings can be made on our website:

• Remutaka Hill closure escort booking form

State Highway 2, Remutaka Hill, planned night closures. January – June 2024:

Weekly roadworks schedule

The details below outline the main planned state highway roadworks occurring in the greater Wellington region over the coming week (from Saturday, 6 January). Further details about regional state highway conditions and roadworks are also published on our website:

• Wellington roadworks
• Wellington Transport Alliance

NOTE: Roadworks are dependent on weather and other factors. Bad weather can see work postponed to the next suitable night in the works programme.

View/download the planned state highway roadworks for the lower North Island

Update 2:45pm

State Highway 5 has now reopened in both directions.

There may be minor delays as queued traffic clears.

New Zealand Transport Agency/Waka Kotahi wants to thank drivers for their patience and cooperation while this crash scene was cleared.

2:10pm

State Highway 5 is currently closed between Waiohotu Road and Tapapa Road following a single vehicle crash.

The incident was reported around 1 pm today. Emergency services and contractors are attending.

Drivers should avoid the area and those travelling between Tirau and Rotorua should use an alternate route.

The closure may be in place for several hours.

The next stage of safety improvements to the town’s bypass route will include the installation of flexible safety barriers on a 5km section of the route from Napier Road south to the airport roundabout.

Contractors will begin working on Monday, 15 January, with an expected mid-year completion. The road shoulder on the northbound lane will be widened by 1.5m to make room for the barrier installation, and some northbound lane areas will receive side barriers and guardrail. Earth bunds, about 1m high, will be built at sections where the shared path is exposed to state highway traffic.

Traffic management and speed restrictions at the work site may lead to short delays.

In the 10 years 2014-2023, six people were killed and four people were seriously injured on the 15km East Taupō Arterial, along with 23 minor and 58 non-injury crashes. The safety improvements will make the road more forgiving, with crashes less likely to result in deaths and serious injuries.

Flexible safety barriers down the middle of a road prevent head-on collisions, and along the side of the road they help stop run-off-road crashes, catching vehicles before they hit something harder, like a pole, a tree or oncoming car.

Read more about this project

Changes introduced on 1 October 2023 to bring in an all-in-one fee for each stage of a driver licence have significantly increased the number of people sitting their learners licence test.

The removal of resit fees has seen many people choosing to re-sit a theory test more than once in a single day, after failing their initial attempt.

“Learner tests must be booked in person at AA and VTNZ sites.  Introducing a stand down period after two failed attempts on the same day means more testing slots will be  available for others, and may encourage applicants who fail tests to better prepare for their next attempt,” says Neil Cook, NZTA Deputy Director of Land Transport.

“The 10-working days stand down comes into effect on Monday 8 January 2024, and applies to applicants trying to book more than two learner tests on the same day. We’ll monitor the learner licence resit bookings closely, and will remove the stand down period when demand drops.

“The number of learner licence tests available on any day is determined by the number of computer terminals and staff available to supervise testing.  Many people are currently failing a learner test then waiting for the next available slot, failing again, then using the next available slot, which clogs up the number of available tests at a site,” says Mr Cook. 

The change to all-in-one fee for each stage of a driver licence last year was designed to encourage people to enter and progress to a full driver licence and demand for tests has increased significantly.

To obtain Class 1 a learner licence to begin on-road training, an applicant must pass a theory test by correctly answering at least 32 of 35 randomly selected questions based on the Road Code.

“Some people are turning up to sit a learner test without having read and learned the Road Code. This impacts other learner licence applicants who must wait for a free slot. The 10-working days stand down will prevent applicants clogging up available testing slots,” Mr Cook says.

NZTA, AA and VTNZ ask people to make sure they are properly prepared before arriving for a driver licence test to improve their ability to pass. The https://drive.govt.nz website and Drive Go app have plenty of information to help people prepare for both theory and practical driving tests and AA have a free quiz https://www.aa.co.nz/drivers/learn-to-drive-the-aa-way/road-code-quiz/ and online practice tests for learners https://www.aa.co.nz/drivers/learn-to-drive-the-aa-way/road-code-practice-test/

The alternate route between the two towns is via Reefton, SH7 and SH69.

The road is closed from the Cobden Bridge through to the entrance to Westport with the Police Serious Crash Unit attending.

The crash occurred just north of Punakaiki, south of Fox River.

It is expected the road would be closed for six or more hours with the next update around 10 pm tonight, says NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi.