Waikato Expressway just got more express: 110kph speed limit confirmed

Tuesday, 28 June 2022

Faster travel will be allowed between Hampton Downs and Tamahere, Transport Minister Michael Wood announced.

Drivers will be able to travel at 110kph on the Waikato Expressway between Hampton Downs and Tamahere.

The final piece of the expressway, the section that will bypass Hamilton, is due to open mid-July, and it has previously been said the new road would slice 35 minutes off a trip between Auckland and Tīrau.

The 110kph speed limit was announced by Transport Minister Michael Wood on Tuesday.

“When completed, people will be able to safely travel a continuous 78km, from Hampton Downs to south of Cambridge, on a median-divided four-lane expressway at 110kph,” Wood said.

The Hamilton section of the Waikato Expressway is set to open shortly after July 12.

* A sneak peek at Hamilton's new section of Waikato Expressway

The higher speed limit will apply to a 78-kilometre stretch of the expressway.

* Push to make most of Waikato Expressway 110kmh attracts 600 submissions

“The Waikato Expressway is a key transport route for the Waikato region, connecting Auckland to the agricultural and business centres of the central North Island.”

“The new speed limit will apply to the Hamilton section of the Waikato Expressway scheduled to open in mid-July, as well as the remaining Hampton Downs, Ngāruawāhia and Tamahere sections currently being upgraded to meet the necessary design and safety standards,” Michael Wood said.

The new limit applies from July 13, Wood said, and was possible because the road has features such as having at least two lanes in each direction, a central median barrier, and not having significant curves.

The Hamilton section of the expressway is due to open mid-July.

Waka Kotahi said the road has been designed and built to be “one of the best roads in New Zealand”.

When the organisation consulted on raising the speed limit, most of the 744 submissions were in favour.

“The Expressway will improve economic growth and productivity through more efficient movement of people and freight, as a result of increased capacity and passing opportunities,” Wood said.

Further information on the speed limits and the results of the consultation is available on the Waka Kotahi website.

The full Waikato Expressway is 102km long and has been in progress since January 2009.

Its final piece, the Hamilton section, spans 21.8km and began with a sod-turning in March 2016.