Auckland Southern Motorway

The Auckland Southern Motorway (also known as the Southern Motorway, and historically as the Auckland–Hamilton Motorway) is the major route south out of the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It is part of State Highway 1.

The motorway is 45 kilometres in length, with 28 junctions including termini. It runs from the Central Motorway Junction in central Auckland, through Manukau City, Papakura, and Drury, before terminating onto the Waikato Expressway at the top of the Bombay Hills.

Route

The Southern Motorway starts just north of the Central Motorway Junction on the west side of central Auckland. It is a direct extension of the Northern Motorway, changing to the Southern Motorway just south of exits 424C and 424D.

For the first kilometre, the road has two lanes each way because of the Victoria Park Viaduct. The motorway then goes deep into the Central Motorway Junction, turning eastward to form a southern boundary to the Auckland CBD, and then turns south-eastwards as it leaves the junction. There are several exits northbound only through the junction, connecting to the city centre and the Northwest Motorway.

South of the junction is the busiest section of the motorway, and the busiest section of road in New Zealand, carrying an average of 200,000 vehicles per day. To cope with this, the short section between Khyber Pass Road and Gillies Avenue is five lanes wide each way. Many vehicles leave at Gillies Ave to head for Auckland International Airport.

The motorway then crosses the narrow Newmarket Viaduct, before turning to follow the North Auckland Rail Line to Ellerslie. At Ellerslie, the motorway leaves the railway line and skirts around Penrose, heading in a south-easterly direction towards Hamlins Hill where there are junctions with the South-Eastern Highway (Southbound exit and northbound entrance only) and the Mt Wellington Highway.

Immediately after the Mt Wellington Highway interchange, the motorway curves south to head towards the Tāmaki River. After crossing the Tāmaki River, the motorway forms a boundary between the suburbs of Papatoetoe to the west and Ōtara to the east. At Manukau City Centre, the motorway has a major junction with the South-Western Motorway and then bypasses Manurewa to the east. The motorway then curves towards the south-westerly direction where it crosses Great South Road at the Takanini interchange. The motorway once again curves south and bypasses Papakura to the west.

At Drury, the motorway has a junction with State Highway 22, before heading south towards the Bombay Hills. At the Bombay interchange, the motorway becomes the Waikato Expressway and continues on south towards the Waikato.

History

The first part of the Southern Motorway opened on July 16, 1953, connecting Ellerslie-Panmure Highway to Mount Wellington Highway. It was soon extended to Redoubt Road in 1955, offering a faster route than the Great South Road between Ellerslie and Wiri.

Over the years, the motorway grew in both directions. In 1963, it reached north to Green Lane East and south to Takanini, bypassing Manurewa. By 1965, it extended further north to St Marks Road and south to Great South Road near Runciman. The Newmarket Viaduct opened in 1966, stretching the northern end to Khyber Pass Road and adding a ramp to Symonds Street.

In the 1970s, many new on- and off-ramps were built, including connections to Nelson Street, Hobson Street, and Grafton Road near the Port of Auckland. By 1978, the motorway reached St Stephens in the south and connected to the Northern Motorway in the north. In 1988, it linked to the Northwestern Motorway, and in 1993, it was extended to Mill Road near Bombay, bypassing busy crossroads and reducing delays.

The interchange at Manukau between the Southwestern and Southern Motorways became fully operational in 2010. In 2012, a new, wider Newmarket Viaduct opened for northbound traffic, replacing the older bridge.

Abandoned project

The plan for a new road called the Eastern Transport Corridor was meant to connect fast-growing parts of Auckland. However, many people did not support building this road. Because of this, the plan was changed to improve public transport instead. This included upgrading Panmure railway station and building a special bus route called the Eastern Busway, which is set to finish in 2026.

Interchanges

The Auckland Southern Motorway, also called the Southern Motorway, is a big road that leads south from Auckland in New Zealand. It is part of State Highway 1 and stretches for 45 kilometres with 28 places where other roads meet it.

Location	km	mi	Exit	Destinations
Auckland CBD	427.4	265.6	427	Nelson Street – City Centre (West)
	427.8	265.8	428	SH 16 west (Northwestern Motorway) – Waitākere, Helensville
	428.4	266.2	429A-B-C	Symonds Street – City Centre (South) Wellesley Street – City Centre (East) SH 16 east (Northwestern Motorway) – Port
Newmarket	428.9	266.5	430	Khyber Pass Road (Route 12)
	429.5	266.9	431	Gillies Ave (Route 12) – Airport, Newmarket, Epsom
	431.0	267.8	Newmarket Viaduct
Remuera West	431.8	268.3	432	Market Road
Greenlane	433.1	269.1	433	Green Lane East (Route 9) – Remuera, Greenlane
Ellerslie	434.1	269.7	434	Tecoma Street – Ellerslie, Racecourse
Ellerslie South	435.3	270.5	435	Ellerslie-Panmure Highway (Route 5) – Ellerslie, Penrose, Panmure, Racecourse
Mt Wellington South	437.6	271.9	437	South-Eastern Highway (Route 10) – Airport, Onehunga, Pakuranga, Howick
	438.4	272.4	438	Mt Wellington Highway (Route 6) – Sylvia Park, Mt Wellington, Panmure, Onehunga
Ōtāhuhu East	441.1	274.1	441	Princes Street – Ōtāhuhu, Middlemore, Hospital
Ōtara West	442.6	275.0	443	Highbrook Drive
Ōtara	443.9	275.8	444	East Tamaki Road (Route 8) – Ōtara, East Tāmaki, Papatoetoe
Manukau CBD	446.8	277.6	447	Te Irirangi Drive (Route 30)
	448.0	278.4	448	Redoubt Road – Manukau
	448.7	278.8	449	SH 20 (Southwestern Motorway) – Auckland Airport
	448.7	278.8	449A	Great South Road – Manukau
Manurewa	450.8	280.1	451	Hill Road – Manurewa
Takanini	453.8	282.0	453	Great South Road (Route 3) – Takanini, Manurewa
Pahurehure	457.9	284.5	458	Beach Road/Hingaia Road – Papakura, Karaka
Papakura	459.5	285.5		Papakura Service Centre
Drury	461.0	286.5	461	SH 22 (Great South Road) – Drury, Pukekohe
Ramarama	465.6	289.3	466	Ararimu Road – Ramarama
Bombay	471.5	293.0	471	Mill Road – Bombay, Pukekohe
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Incomplete access