State Highway 18 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Route information | ||||
Maintained by NZ Transport Agency | ||||
Length | 14 km (8.7 mi) | |||
Major junctions | ||||
North-east end | SH 1 (Auckland Northern Motorway) at North Shore | |||
South-west end | SH 16 south (Northwestern Motorway) at West Harbour | |||
Location | ||||
Country | New Zealand | |||
Primary destinations | Greenhithe, Hobsonville | |||
Highway system | ||||
|
State Highway 18 (SH 18) is a state highway that runs between the Auckland Northern Motorway (SH 1) on the North Shore and the Northwestern Motorway (SH 16) in West Auckland, New Zealand. The Upper Harbour Motorway forms most of its length as of 2016 (the exception being a two-kilometre stretch at the north-eastern end). SH 18 forms the northern part of the Western Ring Route, which continues from Waitakere south-east to Manukau.
SH 18 begins at the Auckland Northern Motorway and runs southwest as a dual carriageway road, and is coextensive with the Upper Harbour Highway, which after two kilometres becomes a motorway at the Albany Highway interchange. This four-lane section of motorway opened in December 2007, and bypassed the single carriageway Upper Harbour Drive. The motorway heads south-west, crossing the upper reaches of the Waitematā Harbour over the Upper Harbour Bridge. At Squadron Drive, the highway extends onto a new section of motorway, which opened in August 2011, bypassing Hobsonville Road. [1] This road cuts across in a southwestern direction across farmland to Westgate, where it turns southward and merges with the Northwestern Motorway (SH 16) southbound.
Territorial authority | Location | km | mi | Exit | Destinations | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Auckland – Upper Harbour Local Board | Unsworth Heights | 0.0 | 0.0 | SH 1 south (Northern Motorway) – Auckland | SH 18 begins | |
SH 1 north (Northern Motorway) – Whangarei | ||||||
0.5 | 0.31 | 1 | Caribbean Drive Paul Matthews Road | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance | ||
2.4 | 1.5 | 2 | Albany Highway (Urban Route 26) | Upper Harbour Motorway begins | ||
Greenhithe | 4.3 | 2.7 | 4 | Greenhithe Road | Eastbound exit and westbound entrance | |
6.2 | 3.9 | 6 | Tauhinu Road | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | ||
7.4 | 4.6 | Upper Harbour Bridge (Waitematā Harbour) | ||||
Hobsonville | 8.8 | 5.5 | 8 | Squadron Drive | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | |
10.7 | 6.6 | 9 | Brigham Creek Road – Whenuapai, Helensville | to SH 16 north | ||
12.7 | 7.9 | 10 | Trig Road | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance | ||
Auckland – Henderson-Massey Local Board | Westgate | 13.9 | 8.6 | 11 | Hobsonville Road (Urban Route 32) | Westbound exit and eastbound entrance |
14.0 | 8.7 | SH 16 south (Northwestern Motorway) – Waitakere, Auckland | SH 18 ends Upper Harbour Motorway ends | |||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi |
SH 18 formerly ran along the Coatesville Riverhead Highway, further north than its current position. This route is now designated as Auckland Urban Route 28.
The route of the new motorway from Upper Harbour Bridge to Westgate was originally to receive a cycleway as well, but although the land was set aside, there is no timetable for the construction of the route. [1]
State Highway 1 is the longest and most significant road in the New Zealand road network, running the length of both main islands. It appears on road maps as SH 1 and on road signs as a white number 1 on a red shield, but it has the official designations SH 1N in the North Island, SH 1S in the South Island.
The Central Motorway Junction or CMJ, is the intersection of State Highways 1 and 16, just south of the central business district of Auckland. A multilevel structure, it has been described as a "fiendishly complicated, multi-layered puzzle of concrete, steel and asphalt". Carrying around 200,000 vehicles a day, it is one of the busiest stretches of road in New Zealand.
Transport in Auckland, New Zealand's largest city, is defined by factors that include the shape of the Auckland isthmus, the suburban character of much of the urban area, a history of focusing investment on roading projects rather than public transport, and high car-ownership rates.
The Auckland Northern Motorway in the Auckland Region of New Zealand links Central Auckland and Puhoi in the former Rodney District via the Hibiscus Coast and North Shore. It is part of State Highway 1.
The Auckland Southern Motorway is the major route south out of the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It is part of State Highway 1.
The Northwestern Motorway, part of State Highway 16, is the major western route and secondary northern route out of Auckland in New Zealand. Twenty-one kilometres in length, the motorway runs from Stanley St in Parnell through the Central Motorway Junction, and west through Central Auckland and West Auckland before continuing northwest and terminating outside of Kumeū. Its western terminus is at Brigham Creek Road in Whenuapai. A large part of it forms the middle section of the Western Ring Route.
State Highway 20 (SH 20), also known as the Southwestern Motorway, is a New Zealand state highway linking State Highway 1 at Manukau with State Highway 16 in Point Chevalier, via Māngere and Onehunga. Along with its spurs, State Highway 20A and 20B, the state highway serves Auckland Airport, the country's largest, therefore making SH 20 a key arterial route connecting the airport to the wider Auckland region and most of the upper North Island. The route also forms the southern part of the Western Ring Route, a 48 kilometres (30 mi) motorway route bypassing central Auckland.
The Dunedin Southern Motorway is the main arterial route south from the South Island city of Dunedin, part of New Zealand's State Highway 1. Despite its name, only a portion of the route is officially classified as motorway. The route is the southernmost section of median-divided highway in the world.
State Highway 5, one of New Zealand's eight national highways, runs from State Highway 1 at Tīrau, in the south Waikato, to State Highway 2, close to the Hawkes Bay coast at Bay View, 10 km north of Napier. It is the second shortest of the national highways.
State Highway 2 runs north–south through eastern parts of the North Island of New Zealand from the outskirts of Auckland to Wellington. It runs through Tauranga, Gisborne, Napier, Hastings and Masterton. It is the second-longest highway in the North Island, after State Highway 1, which runs the length of both of the country's main islands.
The Waikato Expressway is a dual carriageway section of State Highway 1 in New Zealand's Waikato region. Constructed in stages, it forms part of the link between Auckland and Hamilton. Currently stretching from Auckland to south of Cambridge, the highway was first built in 1993. Throughout its current lifetime, it had underwent many upgrades to optimize traffic flow throughout the Waikato region, including various bypasses of most towns in the region, and lastly Hamilton in 2022.
The Hutt Expressway is a 3-4 lane divided highway running from the Wellington Urban Motorway at Ngauranga, past Lower Hutt and central Upper Hutt, to the intersection with Fergusson Drive in Maoribank in north-eastern Upper Hutt. State Highway 2 officially continues north of Maoribank to Te Mārua, Kaitoke, and over the Rimutaka Hill to Wairarapa, but this section is two lanes undivided and is covered in the main State Highway 2 article. The names Hutt Expressway and Hutt Motorway are not official, and actually refers to three different roads: Hutt Road from the Ngauranga Interchange to the Petone Overbridge, Western Hutt Road from the Petone Overbridge to the Silverstream Bridge, and River Road from Silverstream Bridge to Maoribank.
State Highway 16 is a New Zealand state highway linking central Auckland with Wellsford, via Auckland's Northwestern Motorway, Helensville and Kaukapakapa. It provides an alternative to SH 1 for traffic travelling between Auckland and parts of Northland from Wellsford northwards.
The Northwestern Cycleway is a 12 km mostly off-road cycle route in New Zealand that connects the Auckland CBD with the suburb of Westgate. For most of its length, it runs alongside the Northwestern Motorway.
The Western Ring Route is a motorway system being constructed in Auckland, New Zealand. It currently runs along the entire Southwestern Motorway, most of the Northwestern Motorway, the entire Upper Harbour Motorway, and the entire Upper Harbour Highway. 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.
State Highway 74 is a state highway in New Zealand servicing the eastern suburbs of Christchurch. Mostly two-lane, it is composed of limited-access expressways, with part of the highway as the Christchurch-Lyttelton Motorway, and connects the city to its port town of Lyttelton.
State Highway 57 (SH 57) is a New Zealand state highway, linking State Highway 1 north of Ohau to State Highway 3 east of Ashhurst, via Levin, Shannon, Massey University and the southern suburbs of Palmerston North. The highway connects State Highway 1 traffic coming north from Wellington to the city of Palmerston North, and further to the Manawatu Gorge, allowing passage to the eastern side of the North Island and to the twin cities of Napier and Hastings. The highway is classified by the NZTA as a national strategic road.
State Highway 25 is a New Zealand state highway that crosses the Hauraki Plains and loops around the Coromandel Peninsula in the North Island. The route is very scenic and provides access to idyllic beach holiday locations. It is a major road for holidaymakers and tourists, with the summer period around Christmas and New Year's Eve a particularly busy time. It is single carriageway for the entire route. The road is windy in many parts and prone to accidents. It is New Zealand's third longest two-digit state highway, after SH 35 and SH 94. It is part of the Pacific Coast Highway. There is one spur road, SH 25A, which cuts across the peninsula west to east, almost intersecting SH 25 at both ends.
State Highway 59 (SH 59) is a New Zealand state highway in the Wellington Region linking Mackays Crossing to Linden. It came into existence on 7 December 2021, prior to the opening of the Transmission Gully Motorway and consists of the former route of State Highway 1 between Mackays Crossing and Linden.