The Auckland Harbour Bridge is likely to close for brief periods tomorrow Sunday 31 August during strong wind gusts.

Metservice advises that northwesterly winds are likely to hit AMBER thresholds early Sunday morning and strengthen to RED levels by late morning triggering a RED alert.

To ensure safety, speed limits on the bridge may be reduced,  lanes on the bridge may close, or short periods of full closures may be required.

Motorist are advised to drive to the conditions and pay attention to electronic message boards on the motorway.

With strong winds predicted, drivers of high-sided vehicles and motorcyclists should avoid the Auckland Harbour Bridge and use the western ring route on State Highways 16 and 18.

Keeping road users safe and protecting the bridge are a priority. Decisions to lower speeds, close lanes, or close are carefully considered.

NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) will continue to work closely with Metservice to monitor conditions and ensure decisions are based on up-to-date and accurate information on predicted and current wind speeds.

Drivers are encouraged to check road and weather conditions before they travel:

• Highway Conditions – Auckland
• NZ Transport Agency - Auckland & Northland – X/Twitter(external link)
• Metservice Weather Warnings(external link)