Wellesley Street & Victoria Street intersection closure switch
The heart of Tāmaki Makaurau is being transformed and, as part of that, construction of the Te Waihorotiu Station progresses.
The Victoria Street and Albert Street intersection has closed temporarily for approximately two years. Wellesley Street West has re-opened to through traffic.
Both intersections remain open for business and to pedestrians.
Since closing the Wellesley Street West intersection, our team have moved hundreds of kilometres of underground utilities, and have built the station’s permanent walls and roof slabs at the intersection.
The Victoria St Intersection closure enables our Link Alliance contractors to work moving and upgrading the underground utilities, building Te Waihorotiu Station underground and its above ground entrance, and completing streetscape improvements.
What the changes mean for you
Bus users
Most bus routes have returned to Wellesley Street West, which will have dedicated 24/7 bus lanes in each direction. Detailed information about bus route changes in the area can be found online at AT.govt.nz/BetterWay
Private vehicles
If you drive a private vehicle into the city centre, there will be delays to your journey.
Consider using public transport to get to and from the city centre.
Walking or biking could also be a faster option.
People on foot
We installed temporary footpaths around the closed intersection so that you can still walk through it.
To maintain accessibility for people with mobility aids, prams or scooters, we will ensure temporary footpaths are step free.
Signage helps you find your way around the intersection.
Service providers
You will still be able to drive into the city centre to provide your services.
Multiple loading zones are installed around the site for you to use.
Businesses are still open
The city centre remains open for business and leisure. With events, public art and other fun planned during construction – it will always be a great place to work, to visit and to support local!
We’re committed to supporting local businesses and will implement a comprehensive development response programme to support our neighbours during the closure of the Victoria Street West Intersection. This includes a range of activations and events in the area - we’ll keep you updated on the new ways you can support local.
Te Waihorotiu Station in midtown
Midtown is at the heart of Auckland’s city centre – a place where civic, cultural, and commercial activities converge with a growing residential community. Midtown is loosely defined as the area within Nelson Street to the west, Victoria Street to the north, Myers Park to the south and Albert Park to the east.
Over the next decade, midtown will undergo a significant regeneration to become a hub of public and private development.
Te Waihorotiu Station is an important part of this and is set to become the busiest transport centre in New Zealand. With entrances on both Wellesley and Victoria Streets, and room for nine-car electric trains, Te Waihorotiu Station (Aotea) will revitalise the midtown precinct and provide people with better access to education and the arts precinct, as well as new housing and employment opportunities.
The new, state of the art, underground station will be 15-metres-deep, 300-metres-long and will connect with Waitematā Station (Britomart), Karanga-a-Hape Station a new station under Karangahape Road, and a redeveloped Maungawhau Station with 3.45km of new underground track.
With a train at least every ten minutes at peak times, you can just turn up and go. No more timetables!
Te Waihorotiu Station will also be future-proofed for a potential future connection to the North Shore, and has been designed to accommodate a future 41,000sqm tower development being built over the top of its Wellesley Street entrance.
We’re making good progress
Construction of the station is massive in scale - more ground material will be removed for Te Waihorotiu Station (Aotea) than what our tunnel boring machine will remove for the 3.5 kilometers of tunnels it constructs.
Milestone timetable
By May 2021 we had:
Completed over 80% of the bored piles
Installed over 50% of the station’s walls
Safely deconstructed and stored the heritage Bluestone Wall
Started underground construction and the station’s roo
2021
Reopen Wellesley Street to through traffic
Close Victoria Street and Albert Street intersection to traffic
Begin above-ground construction of the Wellesley Street station entrance building
Tunnel boring machine breaks through into Mayoral Drive, completing first tunnel
2022
Tunnel boring machine breaks through into Mayoral Drive completing second tunnel
Above-ground streetscape and urban realm works begin
Victoria Street station entrances construction begins
2023
Station structure complete and installation of rail track and systems begins
Victoria Street and Albert Street intersection re-opens to traffic
Above-ground streetscape improvements continue, including upgrades to facilitate a Wellesley Street bus corridor and a future Victoria Street linear park.
2024
While construction is underway there will sometimes be additional noise and vibration created. This is an unavoidable result of construction however we will regularly monitor the noise and vibration emitted from our work so that we can reduce the impact they create as much as possible.