TRANSPORT

Wellington Transport Package (SH1 Improvements)

Waka Kotahi / Wellington City Council / Greater Wellington RC · Wellington

A roading-focused replacement for the $7.4b Let's Get Wellington Moving, disestablished in March 2024: second Terrace and Mt Victoria tunnels, Basin Reserve changes, and extra lanes on Karo Drive and Vivian Street. NZTA's envelope is $2.9b to $3.8b and the bottom is shown. Construction is unfunded and on ice until at least 2037.

Mixed signals Data: High

Delivery Confidence Score, 0 to 100, higher is better: a ranking of how strong this project's delivery signals are, not a probability. It blends eight factors, including the election risk and policy alignment shown below.

Breakdown▾

Data current as at 16 Sept 2026, when the pipeline was last checked against its source.

Key facts

Region: Wellington
Sector: Transport
Status: Planning
Estimated value: $2.9b
Indicative completion: TBC
Funding status: Part Funded
Lead organisation: Waka Kotahi / Wellington City Council / Greater Wellington RC
Election risk: High

Election risk assessment

LGWM was disestablished in 2024; the roading-focused replacement (2nd Mt Victoria tunnel etc.) is government-fast-tracked but long-dated, and Wellington transport remains deeply contested.

Government priority alignment

MEDIUM: The PT-heavy LGWM was cancelled; the roads-focused replacement aligns better with the transport policy, though scope is contested.

Chronology

2018Let's Get Wellington Moving programme launched
2024LGWM disestablished (March); mass-transit and mega-tunnel scrapped
2025~$3.8B roading replacement announced: second Terrace Tunnel, Karo Drive and Vivian Street lanes, Basin Reserve changes, second Mt Victoria Tunnel, and Ruahine Street / Wellington Road widening
2026NZTA lodges the fast-track consent application for the SH1 improvements (Aug); $185m approved for design, consents and early works, major construction funding not yet committed
2026The EPA accepted NZTA's Fast-track application for the SH1 Wellington improvements as complete on 7 September, and it is being processed under the Fast-track Approvals Act 2024. An expert panel will be appointed to determine it. NZTA publishes no construction status for the project, so it stays in Planning here.

Source

NZTA: SH1 Wellington improvements ↗ · RNZ: Fast-track process begins for Wellington's second Mt Victoria Tunnel project (Aug 2026) ↗

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