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TRANSPORT
Pūhoi to Warkworth — Motorway Extension
Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency · Auckland
Extension of the Northern Motorway from Pūhoi to Warkworth — 18.5km of new four-lane motorway through the Pūhoi Valley. Due to open 2026. Continues the Auckland–Whangārei expressway towards completion.
A
98/100 · Very likely to proceed
Completion Probability — likelihood this proceeds on roughly its stated timeline.
Funding statusweight 30%
Delivery stageweight 25%
Election / policy riskweight 20%
Govt priority alignmentweight 12%
Project scaleweight 8%
Delivery agencyweight 5%
Key facts
- Region
- Auckland
- Sector
- Transport
- Status
- Under Construction
- Estimated value
- $940m
- Indicative completion
- 2026
- Funding status
- Fully Funded
- Lead organisation
- Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency
- Election risk
- Safe
Election risk assessment
Near completion, bipartisan support as key SH1 improvement.
Government priority alignment
HIGH — RoNS Northern Motorway extension nearing completion — GPS priority.
Chronology
- 2009Pūhoi to Warkworth declared as Roads of National Significance — top-priority extension of Northern Motorway
- 2015Route designation and resource consent granted. Pūhoi Valley alignment confirmed
- 2018Construction begins. Alliance contract awarded
- 2020COVID supply chain issues cause delays. Cost increases to $940M
- 2023Tunnels and major structures complete. Viaducts across Pūhoi Valley installed
- 2026Expected opening — completing Pūhoi to Warkworth section