Improving traffic flow on Park Road

This project is open for feedback until 15 December 2025. Please take the survey here to share your thoughts.

Park Road is a key route to access the hospital, Auckland Domain and the University of Auckland’s School of Medicine. It is also a connecting route to Newmarket and the city centre. On weekdays, nearly 28,000 people drive down here – half of these are on the bus, and the other half are in cars. This number is continuing to grow as more people choose to live here, or visit.

But during the late morning and early afternoon, between 10am and 2pm, congestion builds up from Grafton Road to the hospital entrance, causing delays of up to 10 minutes. With only one lane available while travelling towards the hospital, vehicles waiting to turn into the hospital block others, creating frustration and risky behaviour. Drivers often cross onto the other side of the road to bypass queues - a dangerous practice that happens frequently.

We recognise that Park Road is more than just a road - it’s a vital route for thousands of people who need to access the hospital and we want to make sure it's a safe route too. We’re proposing changes to improve safety and traffic flow to support our growing city. Share your feedback so we can get the details right together.

Proposed improvements

Dynamic Lane (Monday - Friday, 10 am - 2 pm)

The dynamic lane set up will make the most of these three lanes, giving motorists a dedicated left turn into the hospital, and a dedicated lane to safely move past the hospital when it’s busy. This new lane set up will operate from 10am - 2pm on weekdays. One lane will be available for people travelling to the city centre.

For these four hours (10am - 2pm) on weekdays, buses and cyclists will no longer have a dedicated lane heading towards the city for 200m in the dynamic lane zone.

Reverting to existing road layout (All Other Times)

At all other times, two lanes will continue to be used for people heading to the city centre (one bus lane and one general vehicle lane), with one lane heading from the city centre to the hospital entrance. This single lane heading towards the hospital entrance will split into:

• A left-turn lane into the hospital carpark.
• A through lane continuing to Newmarket.

This is to manage any unsafe driver behaviour and stop them from driving into oncoming traffic.

Electronic road markings and digital signs for lane guidance

Electronic LED road markers and signs will be installed to direct traffic safely through the new lane setup. This will include two overhead gantries (overhead signs that show you which lane to use), four digital bus lane signs on the side of the road that indicates when the bus lane is active, and LED lights on the road in place of lane markings so you have peace of mind knowing where you can drive.

There will also be a digital messaging sign indicating parking availability for the hospital car park on Grafton Road and three other digital signs indicating lane use for motorists on Park Road.

This proposal won’t impact any parking spaces or bus stops. The bus lane will remain operational outside of 10am - 2pm, Monday - Friday. This will be communicated by the overhead gantry and digital bus lane signs on the side of the road that indicate when the bus lane is active.

How you can have your say

We’d like to hear your thoughts on how we can refine our plans to help you move safely along this road. Please provide your feedback by taking this survey by 15 December 2025.

You can also come and have a chat to us in-person (details below), or email your feedback to ATEngagement@at.govt.nz.

About the Network Optimisation Programme

Auckland's future travel demand will largely rely on making the best of our existing transport corridors. The Auckland Network Optimisation Programme aims to enhance the city's transport network. By making small, cost-effective changes to roads and paths, the programme seeks to improve travel choices, road safety, and overall efficiency. Find out more about how we optimise our transport network here.