Experts say a mix of population growth, commuting patterns and transport infrastructure is driving the city’s worsening congestion, but they have also weighed in on possible solutions.
The Herald asked Auckland Transport (AT) to identify the most congested roads last year. The agency supplied data from February, as this was when congestion hit its 2025 peak.
AT’s customer and network performance team said a road was considered congested when average speeds were at or below 50% of the speed limit.
The worst roads slowed to below 30% of the posted speed limit during peak travel times, which were 8am-9am and 5pm-6pm.
At peak travel times, some Auckland commuters were travelling barely faster than a jogger.
Morning peak speeds dropped as low as 8km/h on Manukau Rd/Broadway and Ponsonby Rd/Newton Rd.
Raleigh Rd/Lake Rd averaged 9km/h during the morning peak.
Commuters on Tī Rākau Drive faced the longest recorded morning travel time at 15.72 minutes for the measured section.
Gillies Ave was next, with trips taking 13.41 minutes at the morning peak.
AT said congestion was “dynamic”. Delays depended on factors such as peak hours, travel mode, school holidays, roadworks, location and crashes.
The data was sourced from an external provider and from vehicles, smartphones and other mobile devices.
What causes congestion and what’s the solution?
AA policy director Martin Glynn said congestion was a daily frustration for many Aucklanders, particularly those who had no choice but to drive to fixed commitments such as work or medical appointments.
He said population growth was the biggest cause.
“Much of Auckland’s growth has tended to be in the outskirts of the city.
“Growth in the outer parts of a city tends to make congestion worse because it often means longer commutes and trips to access services.”
Glynn said as cities became more dense, they tended to become more congested.
“But greater density makes better public transport more viable, which can alleviate congestion in some parts of the city.”
He compared managing congestion to managing rust – in need of constant attention.
“There needs to be a continual focus on how we use our road space, configure our intersections and phase our traffic lights.”
Glynn said potential solutions included new public transport infrastructure, investment in new roads and maintenance of existing roads.
Congestion charging could have unintended consequences
Quantitative geographer expert and University of Auckland lecturer Dr Hyesop Shin has been studying the city’s congestion.
His latest research project found traffic into the CBD increased by 50% on Tuesday and Thursday mornings and afternoons. It was slightly less on Mondays and Fridays.
He said this reflected people’s tendency to work from home on days either side of the weekend.
Most morning traffic came from suburbs immediately surrounding the city centre, such as Grey Lynn, Mt Eden and Remuera.
Although Shin was a supporter of congestion charging, he said it could result in more traffic in other areas.
Computer modelling showed if a cordon was imposed around the CBD, some drivers would take longer routes to avoid paying the tolls.
Traffic could be pushed into residential roads not designed for heavy congestion, creating more bottlenecks.
He said congestion charging had many positives, such as reducing vehicle use, traffic jams and air pollution.
But appropriate travel alternatives had to be in place, such as better public transport for those living further out of the city.
Brown said practical solutions for congestion were critical for economic growth and productivity.
“Congestion is costing our economy billions of dollars every year, and we don’t want it to get worse.”
In November last year, the Government unanimously passed the Land Transport Management (Time-of-Use Charging) Amendment Bill, which will allow motorists to be charged for travelling on the main routes into the city at peak times.
It aims to encourage motorists to shift travel times or use alternative transport, reducing congestion and boosting productivity.
Brown said the latest updates on time-of-use charging were that it would take at least two to three years to implement.
This meant “motorways will still look like carparks at peak times for a while yet”, Brown said.
Although not a “silver bullet”, Brown said putting roading decisions back into the hands of elected members would make for smarter road building and better investment focus.
“We’re already doing it with the Port of Auckland charging more to pick up containers during the day, rather than at night, and that’s already having a significant impact.”
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