Minister of Transport Phil Twyford says the NZ Transport Agency‘s re-evaluation of SH2 Waihi to Tauranga, Otaki to North of Levin, and Whangarei to Warkworth has produced the best solution for their local communities.

All the routes will receive four lanes of capacity in total, when combining the improved existing highways with the addition of new two-lane highways and urgent safety improvements.

Twyford says nobody wants any more lives lost on these roads.

“NZTA is prioritising urgent safety improvements to these roads to make them more forgiving of human error. Drivers will always make mistakes and the government‘s job is to stop those mistakes turning into tragedies.”

Twyford says a total of four lanes of capacity along these routes will help meet future traffic volumes.

“These re-evaluated projects will help grow our regions, get the best value for our transport dollar, and save lives on our roads,” he says.

The nine other re-evaluations are ongoing and all will be complete in December.