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Source: ONE News -
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The Easter rush out of the cities began early on Thursday, with heavy rain and holiday makers making for a bumper to bumper start to the long weekend.
Wellington police warned of lengthy delays in and around the Terrace Tunnel after two cars collided in the tunnel earlier in the day and blocked part of the motorway,
Easter coincides with school holidays this year and the New Zealand Transport Authority expected a big mid-afternoon build-up of traffic.
In the Auckland area, travellers using the new Northern Gateway toll road are being urged to use use SH16 instead of the new toll road, which had heavy traffic by mid-afternoon.
The toll road is expected to improve flow between Auckland from
Northland by by-passing the old narrow and windy route along the
coast between Puhoi and Orewa, but it got off to a bad start when
it opened before Auckland Anniversary weekend in late January and
became clogged with traffic.
The Easter road toll can often make sobering reading and police say
they are expecting speed and alcohol to be the biggest problems on
the roads over Easter this year as well.
Last Easter, nine people were killed and 195 injured. The official
holiday road toll period started at 4pm Thursday and runs through
until 6am on Tuesday.
Transport Minister Steven Joyce is urging motorists to take care on the roads over the period.
"We all have a responsibility for road safety. Please stay alert, drive to the conditions and don't take risks," he says.
Slow down
The Accident Compensation Corporation is encouraging people to slow down this long weekend, saying a 1% drop in speed when driving would prevent 3% of accidents on the roads.
Last year ACC spent almost $18 million on claims involving injuries on the roads.
Spokeswoman Judy Buchanan says speeding leads to a third of the fatalities on our roads and a quarter of all serious injuries. She's encouraging drivers to be aware of the traffic flow, the cars around them and following distance.
According to ACC, the key to staying safe on the roads this Easter is simple - slow down and drive to the conditions. Nine people died on the roads last Easter.
ACC's top tips for having a safe Easter on the roads are:
1 Keep to, or under, the speed limit
2 Brake on the straight, before the bend
3 Increase your following distance in the rain
4 Schedule breaks into your trip so you don't get too
tired
5 Make sure everyone in the car is wearing a seatbelt
6 Stay focused on driving and keep an eye out for pedestrians,
cyclists and motorbike riders
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