| Northwestern Motorway | |
|---|---|
| State Highway 16 | |
The motorway west of Waterview. |
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| Route information | |
| Maintained by New Zealand Transport Agency | |
| Length: | 18 km (11 mi) |
| Existed: | 1955 – present |
| Major junctions | |
| East end: | SH 16 Stanley Street at Auckland City Centre |
| SH 1 Northern Motorway/Southern Motorway at Auckland City Centre | |
| West end: | SH 16/SH 18 Hobsonville Road at Westgate |
| Location | |
| Primary destinations: |
Auckland City, Henderson, Helensville |
| Highway system | |
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New Zealand State Highways |
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The Northwestern Motorway (also known historically as the Auckland–Kumeu Motorway), part of State Highway 16 (SH16), is the major western route and secondary northern route out of Auckland in New Zealand. Eighteen kilometres in length with 16 junctions (including termini), the motorway runs from Stanley St in Parnell through the Central Motorway Junction, and west through urban Auckland to Waitakere City. Its western terminus is at Hobsonville Road in West Harbour, Waitakere City. A large part of it forms the middle section of the Western Ring Route.
Contents |
The first section of the Northwestern Motorway, to Te Atatu, was finished in 1952.[1] The next section opened for traffic in 1955, then offering a two-laned 7.8 km section from Great North Road (current Exit 8) to Lincoln Road (current Exit 16). The section involved bridges over inlets of the Waitemata Harbour, which cut the journey between central Auckland and its airport at Whenuapai by 8 km. This section was later upgraded to four lanes.
In 1957, the motorway was extended westwards by one km to Lincoln Park Avenue, between the current Lincoln Road and Royal Road interchanges. In 1961, it was extended again by 2.7 km to its current terminus on Hobsonville Road at Westgate. Traffic could now travel 11.5 km on the Northwestern Motorway, and the journey between Auckland and Whenuapai was cut by a total of 9 km compared with local roads.
In 1966, the current Auckland International Airport opened at Mangere, and Whenuapai reverted to a military airport. This affected the use of the motorway, delaying further extensions.
Motorway construction recommenced in the late 1970s, to connect the Northwestern Motorway at Waterview to the Auckland city centre, bypassing Great North Road. The first section to open was in 1979, stretching 2.4 km from Newton Road (Exit 5) to Western Springs, at the current site of the eastbound on/off-ramps for St Lukes Road (Exit 6). At the same time, ramps opened as part of the Central Motorway Junction from Newton Road to Nelson Street and Hobson Street (now Exit 4B), connecting the Northwestern Motorway to the city centre. Traffic could access the Southern and Northern Motorways indirectly from the Nelson Street and Hobson Street intersections.
In 1981, the 2.4 km section between Great North Road at Waterview and Motions Road near Western Springs opened, leaving a small 1 km gap where traffic had to use Great North Road. This gap was filled in 1983 when the St Lukes Road interchange was completed.
In 1988, ramps were installed at the Central Motorway Junction to allow direct access between the Southern Motorway and the Northwestern Motorway. The following year, ramps opened between Grafton Gully and the Northwestern Motorway, allowing motorway traffic direct access to the eastern city centre and the port.
In 2006, two new ramps were installed to directly connect the Northwestern Motorway and the Northern Motorway.[2]
In September 2008, construction of a 3 kilometre, 2-lane extension of the Northwestern Motorway from Hobsonville Road to Brigham Creek Road in Whenuapai started, along with a 6 kilometre, 4-lane extension of State Highway 18 motorway from the end of the Northwestern Motorway at Hobsonville Road to the western end of Upper Harbour Bridge in Hobsonville. Major upgrades are also planned between St Lukes and Westgate.
| Territorial authority | Location | km | # | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Auckland Council | Parnell | 1.2 | SH 16 Stanley Street – Port | Northwestern Motorway ends | |
| Grafton | 1.7 | 2 | SH 1 Southern Motorway – Manukau, Hamilton | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | |
| 1.8 | 2A | Wellesley Street | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance | ||
| Auckland CBD | 2.8 | 3 | SH 1 Northern Motorway – North Shore, Whangarei | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | |
| 3.2 | 4C | SH 1 Southern Motorway – Manukau, Hamilton | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance | ||
| 3.3 | 4B | Nelson Street – City Centre, Sky City | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance | ||
| 4A | SH 1 Northern Motorway – North Shore, Whangarei | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance | |||
| Newton | 3.5 | 5 | Newton Road | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance | |
| Western Springs | 6.3 | 6 | Route 9 St Lukes Road – Mt Albert, Western Springs, Pt Chevalier Zoo, MOTAT |
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| Point Chevalier | 8.1 | 8 | Route 11 Great North Road – Avondale, New Lynn | ||
| Proposed junction with SH20 Waterview Connection Will be integrated with current Great North Road junction (Exit 8) |
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| Avondale North | 10.8 | 11 | Rosebank Road | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | |
| 12.3 | 12 | Patiki Road – Avondale, New Lynn | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance | ||
| Te Atatu South | 13.5 | 14 | Route 13 Te Atatu Road – Henderson | ||
| Lincoln North | 15.6 | 16 | Route 19 Lincoln Road – Henderson | ||
| Massey East | 17.8 | 18 | Royal Road | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | |
| Westgate | 19.4 | Route 32 Hobsonville Road | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | ||
| SH 18 Upper Harbour Motorway – North Shore | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | ||||
| Whenuapai | SH 16 – Kumeu, Helensville | Northwestern Motorway ends | |||
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