SH1 Clog Trucks with 1170 Containers for Auckland



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The Constantinos P docks in Northport with more than 1,000 containers to be trucked south later this week. Photo / Supplied

The road between Whangārei and Auckland is about to get jammed with trucks.

The Waka Kotahi NZ transportation agency and police have urged motorists traveling along the route to be very careful with a dozen trucks an hour leaving Northport beginning at 6 a.m.

The trucks will transport around 1,200 containers that could not be unloaded in Auckland from the Constantinos P.

The ship’s diversion to Marsden Pt was seen as an opportunity for Northport to show off its ship unloading material after adding a second crane earlier this year.

It docked on Sunday and trucks were expected to start moving the containers to Auckland tomorrow morning.

That starting point has since moved to Friday. Northport spokesman Peter Heath said the delay was due to 1,170 containers destined for Auckland being stacked for unloading there.

The different configuration at Northport required an additional 300 container movements to remove the Auckland bound containers from the ship.

“For us it has been a massive learning exercise and we said from the beginning that it would be. Hats off and thank you very much to everyone involved for your support.”

Containers will begin leaving Northport at a rate of 12 trucks per hour beginning Friday morning. The trucks will travel to Auckland between 6 am and midnight for seven days.

Traffic will not be all one way: Empty trucks will return to Northport to pick up a new load.

Vehicle compliance officers from Waka Kotahi, Worksafe, and officers from the police commercial vehicle safety team would be en route.

Sergeant Major Mike Flatt said officers would check the number of hours truck drivers spend behind the wheel.

“We know truck drivers can work long hours and we want to make sure all cargo is transported safely. Our officers will focus on ensuring that truck drivers traveling between Northland and Auckland are not fatigued and adhere to their limits. hours of driving, while verifying that the trucks are in driving condition. “

Waka Kotahi NZ Transportation Agency Regional Director Steve Mutton said motorists should plan more time for their trips.

“We expect the roads to be congested before Christmas and there are only a few lane opportunities to pass on the route. We ask motorists to be patient and give trucks room on the road for the safety of all road users. road.

“There may be delays on SH1 next week, and all drivers should factor that into their plans. Trying to ‘make up for lost time’ by accelerating and overtaking unsafe puts everyone on the road at risk.”

Mutton said highway workers would also be busy south of Whangarei to complete as much of the highway resurfacing program as possible before the holiday period.

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