State Highway 18 (New Zealand)

State Highway 18 (SH 18), also known as the Upper Harbour Motorway, is a state highway that runs between the Auckland Northern Motorway (SH 1) on the North Shore and the Northwestern Motorway (SH 16) in West Auckland, New Zealand. SH 18 forms the northern part of the Western Ring Route, which continues from Waitakere south-east to Manukau.

State Highway 18 shield}}
State Highway 18
Map
Route information
Maintained by NZ Transport Agency
Length14 km (8.7 mi)
Major junctions
North-east end SH 1 (Auckland Northern Motorway) at North Shore
South-west end SH 16 south (Northwestern Motorway) at West Harbour
Location
CountryNew Zealand
Primary
destinations
Greenhithe, Hobsonville
Highway system
SH 17 SH 20
The former route of State Highway 18, in 2010, was a mostly rural highway. This route is now designated Urban route 32.
The Hobsonville section of the Upper Harbour Motorway, looking west from the Trig Road Interchange

Route

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SH 18 begins at the Auckland Northern Motorway and runs southwest as a dual carriageway road, and is coextensive with the Upper Harbour Highway, which after two kilometres becomes a motorway at the Albany Highway interchange. This four-lane section of motorway opened in December 2007, and bypassed the single carriageway Upper Harbour Drive. The motorway heads south-west, crossing the upper reaches of the Waitematā Harbour over the Upper Harbour Bridge. At Squadron Drive, the highway extends onto a new section of motorway, which opened in August 2011, bypassing Hobsonville Road.[1] This road cuts across in a southwestern direction across farmland to Westgate, where it turns southward and merges with the Northwestern Motorway (SH 16) southbound.

Interchanges

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Territorial authorityLocationkmmiExitDestinationsNotes
Auckland – Upper Harbour Local BoardUnsworth Heights0.00.0  SH 1 south (Northern Motorway) – AucklandSH 18 and Upper Harbour Motorway begins
  SH 1 north (Northern Motorway) – Whangarei
0.50.311Caribbean Drive
Paul Matthews Road
Eastbound exit and westbound entrance
2.41.52  Route 26 (Albany Highway)
Greenhithe4.32.74Greenhithe RoadWestbound exit and eastbound entrance
6.23.96Tauhinu RoadEastbound exit and Westbound entrance
7.44.6Upper Harbour Bridge (Waitematā Harbour)
Hobsonville8.85.58Squadron DriveWestbound exit and eastbound entrance
10.76.69Brigham Creek Road – Whenuapai, Wellsfordto   SH 16 north
12.77.910Trig RoadWestbound exit and eastbound entrance
Auckland – Henderson-Massey Local BoardWestgate13.98.611  Route 32 (Hobsonville Road)Westbound exit and eastbound entrance
14.08.7  SH 16 south (Northwestern Motorway) – Waitakere, AucklandSH 18 and Upper Harbour Motorway ends
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Former route

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SH 18 formerly ran along the Coatesville Riverhead Highway, further north than its current position. This route is now designated as Auckland Urban Route 28.

Cycleway

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The route of the new motorway from Upper Harbour Bridge to Westgate was originally to receive a cycleway as well, but although the land was set aside, there is no timetable for the construction of the route.[1]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "Pedestrians to hit new motorway". Auckland Now. 3 August 2011. Retrieved 27 September 2011.
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