AUCKLAND, New Zealand — The New Zealand Government has outlined the next steps in New Zealand’s road toward building another crossing for Waitematā Harbour.
Officials said the Auckland Harbour Bridge is one of the most critical transport links in New Zealand, carrying around 184,000 vehicles, including 12,000 freight vehicles and 35,000 bus passengers daily. It also carries water and gas pipelines and telecommunications cables.
“It is the most-travelled piece of road in New Zealand,” Minister of Transport Chris Bishop said in a release.
“But the bridge is old, and even with its clip-on lanes it struggles to cope with the daily traffic volumes it carries let alone the projected future growth,” Bishop added. “Within the coming decade, parts of the bridge will need to be closed for significant periods of time to complete resilience works – significantly disrupting the economy. And with an aging piece of infrastructure, these disruptions are expected to get worse.”
The eight-land Auckland Harbour Bridge opened in 1959 with four lanes. An additional four lanes — the Nippon clip-ons — opened in 1969.
Officials said advancing an additional harbor crossing is a government priority.
“So over the next 12 months, starting in the coming days, we’ll undertake geotechnical, environmental, and utilities investigations to gain a comprehensive understanding of ground and seabed conditions and, in time, to determine whether a bridge or a tunnel would be the more suitable crossing option,” Bishop said. “We expect to make decisions on whether a bridge or a tunnel is the preferred option around the middle of next year.”
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