Dominion Motorways Being Planned Now/

Northern Advocate, 5 June 1948, Page 5

Dominion Motorways Being Planned Now/

WELLINGTON, Sat. (P.A.). —New Zealand’s future motorways are being planned so that necessary land can be acquired before it is too late.

The Minister of Works (Mr Semple) said this when describing progress made in bringing the last session’s legislation into operation.

The Minister said he did not want to leave thing? until the required land for improved highways had been developed and built out as happened in some cases where by-pass roads were provided to relieve congested areas. “It has become apparent that capacities of existing main routes adjacent to cities are already being overtaxed, thus leading to economic loss in transportation costs and of even greater importance.” ACCIDENT RATE The accident potential on these roads is rising at alarming rate. There was not an intention to build a motor highway from Wellington to Auckland. Works of higher priority, such as housing and hydro-electric development would prevent construction going ahead as the Minister would like, but construction had started of limited access roads from Auckland to by-pass Penrose and from and north of Wellington from Johnsonville to Porirua. PURCHASE OF LAND Increasing traffice of the future would necessitate motor roads from Auckland north-west to Whenuapai and between Wellington and Levin and Napier and Hastings and land for these routes was being purchased as surveys were made.

In the meantime, however, investigation was being commenced on northern and southern outlets from Christchurch, the outlets from Dunedin and for a few miles to the north from Invercargill, while consideration was to be given to any other route where the traffic volume might justify a motorway

As far as the South Island was concerned the cities themselves were not generally so far advanced with their town planning schemes and for this reason the location of motor highways coulcl omy pe approximately established.