Western Ring Route

The Western Ring Route is a motorway system being constructed in Auckland, New Zealand. It currently runs along (from south to north) the entire Southwestern Motorway (State Highway 20), most of the Northwestern Motorway (part of SH 16), the entire Upper Harbour Motorway, and the entire Upper Harbour Highway (the last two forming SH 18).[1] When the Upper Harbour Highway is upgraded to motorway status, the route will surpass the Southern Motorway to become the longest motorway in New Zealand at 48 kilometres in length. It runs through Manukau, West Auckland, and the North Shore, bypassing the Auckland city centre and thus providing a second motorway route through the Auckland isthmus.[1]

This article is about the motorway in New Zealand. For the freeway in Australia, see M80 Ring Road.

Western Ring Route
Upper Harbour Highway (SH 18)
Upper Harbour Motorway (SH 18)
Northwestern Motorway (SH 16)
Southwestern Motorway (SH 20)
Route information
Length48 km (30 mi)
HistoryFirst section completed in 1955. Route completed in 2017.
Major junctions
North end SH 1 near Rosedale
Major intersections SH 16 at Westgate
SH 16 at Waterview
SH 20A at Mangere
SH 20B at Puhinui
South end SH 20 at Manukau
Location
CountryNew Zealand
Major citiesGreenhithe, Hobsonville, Massey, Te Atatu, Waterview, Mount Roskill, Onehunga, Mangere, Auckland Airport, Wiri
Highway system

History

The ring route had been planned as early as the first half of the 20th century. Some critics have alleged that the rerouting of State Highway 1 over the Auckland Harbour Bridge (to ensure toll revenues) was a primary contributor to the decades-long delays. The rerouting is alleged to have significantly contributed to the need for a massive motorway through the centre of Auckland, severely damaging inner city suburbs such as Freemans Bay and Grafton.[2]

The section of SH 20 from Queenstown Road to Richardson Road (the Mount Roskill Extension) opened on 15 May 2009.[3] The section of SH 18 connecting the Greenhithe Bridge and SH 16 (the Upper Harbour Motorway) and the extension of SH 16 to Brigham Creek Road opened in August 2011.[4]

Construction of the Waterview Connection began in late 2011 and it was opened to traffic on 2 July 2017. This completed the route as a highway, with a remaining section of SH 18 still to be upgraded to motorway standard. The opening of the Waterview Connection allows traffic to travel along the entire length of the highway, from SH 1 near Rosedale to SH 1 at Manukau.

The Upper Harbour Highway section will be upgraded to motorway status as part of the Northern Corridor Improvements project, with construction starting in April 2018 and expected to be completed by September 2023.[5]

Major junctions
Location km # Destinations Notes
0.0 SH 1 Northern Motorway (south) – Auckland Western Ring Route begins
SH 1 Northern Motorway (north) – Whangarei
Caribbean Drive
Paul Matthews Drive
Unsworth DriveSouthbound exit only
2.42Route 26 Albany HighwayMotorway begins
Greenhithe 4.34Greenhithe RoadSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
6.26Tauhinu RoadNorthbound exit and southbound entrance
7.4Upper Harbour Bridge over Waitematā Harbour
Hobsonville8Squadron DriveSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
9Brigham Creek Road – Whenuapai, Helensvilleto north
10Trig RoadSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
Westgate11Route 32 Hobsonville RoadSouthbound exit and northbound entrance
SH 16 Northwest Motorway (north) – Kumeu, Helensville
19.4 Route 32 Hobsonville Road Northbound exit and southbound entrance
Massey East 17.8 18 Royal Road Northbound exit and southbound entrance
Lincoln North 15.6 16 Route 19 Lincoln Road – Henderson
Te Atatū South 13.5 14 Route 13 Te Atatu Road – Henderson
Avondale North 12.3 12 Patiki Road – Avondale, New Lynn Southbound exit and northbound entrance
10.8 11 Rosebank Road Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
Point Chevalier 8.2 8B SH 20 Southwest Motorway (south) Beginning of Waterview Connection
8.1 8A Route 11 Great North Road – Avondale, New Lynn Southbound exit and northbound entrance
SH 16 Northwest Motorway (east) – Auckland City Centre, Port
Waterview Tunnel
Mount Roskill
Maioro Street
18 Route 4 Dominion Road
Hillsborough 16 Route 15 Hillsborough Road
15 Route 12 Queenstown Road — Auckland City Centre Northbound exit and southbound entrance
Onehunga 13 Neilson Street — Onehunga Wharf, Onehunga, Penrose, Mt Wellington
Māngere Bridge over Manukau Harbour
Māngere Bridge
12 Mahunga Drive — Māngere Bridge Township, Favona Southbound exit and northbound entrance
Māngere 10 Walmsley Road Southbound
Coronation Road Northbound
9 SH 20A — Airport No southbound entrance (use SH20B or Massey Road)
Carriageway mainline connects north to west, traffic proceeding from/to south on motorway must 'exit'.
7 Route 14 Massey Road
Puhinui 3 SH 20B Puhinui Road — Airport No northbound exit (use Cavendish Drive)
Southbound entrance and connection to SH 20B and
3 Route 30 Cavendish Drive No southbound exit (use Puhinui Road)
Northbound entrance and connection to SH 20B and
Manukau CBD 2 Lambie Drive — Manukau City Centre
1 SH 1 Southern Motorway north — Auckland Western Ring Route ends
SH 1 Southern Motorway south — Hamilton
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References
  1. "Western Ring Route". NZ Transport Agency.
  2. Lee, Michael (1 June 2009). "Sins of the fathers – legacy of harbour bridge". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 5 March 2010.
  3. Dearnaley, Mathew (18 May 2009). "Another piece slots into city's commuter jigsaw". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 5 March 2010.
  4. "Pedestrians to hit new motorway". Auckland Now. 3 August 2011. Retrieved 27 September 2011.
  5. "Auckland Northern Corridor". NZ Transport Agency. 2017. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
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