People travelling to Dunedin for the All Blacks v England game Saturday night 6 July should be prepared for extra school holiday traffic on the highways, says NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA).

“We expect to see people arriving in Dunedin for the game from Friday onwards,” says Nicole Felts, Journey Manager for NZTA in Otago. “This is the first time England has played in Dunedin in ten years and up to 30,000 people are expected at the game, the only South Island Home Test venue.”

While traffic on the key routes into Dunedin – particularly from Christchurch – is expected to be busy leading into the game and the Sunday after, there are also a number of local roads around Dunedin which will be closed temporarily.

Catch a free bus from home and/or from the Octagon to the game

“People are encouraged to take a bus from the Octagon – from outside the Dunedin Public Art Gallery - rather than get stressed out in traffic,” says Miss Felts. Park n Ride is operating also.

If people show the bus driver their match tickets, Otago Regional Council will let them get on their suburban bus for free. (This free travel time envelope is valid for two hours before the game, ie from 5 pm, and about an hour afterwards). Some bus routes travel close to the Forsyth Barr Stadium so make for a direct route from home.

Return trips to the Octagon will begin at 9:30 pm from the Forth Street Bus Hub.

One change for Saturday night – SH88, Frederick and Ward Sts after 7 pm

A new temporary traffic management approach will be trialled at the intersection of SH88/Frederick/Ward St.

Frederick and Ward Sts will both be closed at the intersection from 7 pm on Saturday, to be in place after the match. This will allow traffic to only move straight through on SH88, and there will be increased pedestrian phases immediately after the match. The aim is to improve pedestrian safety, and smooth out traffic in the area post-match, says Miss Felts.

School holidays start this weekend, be prepared for snow

July is also the start of two weeks’ of school holidays so rugby fans and school holiday travellers all need to build in plenty of time for their journeys around Otago the first weekend of July.

“Let’s enjoy our holiday travel, be safe and prepared,” says Miss Felts. “We could get some cold, icy, snowy weather so keep an eye out on the MetService weather forecasts and NZTA’s traffic and travel pages before you head off.”

Carry chains, know how to put them on your tyres

If you are travelling through the alpine passes – Lindis, Burkes, Arthur’s and Porters or the Lewis passes and the Crown Range Road linking Queenstown and Wanaka – carry chains if snow is forecast and know how to put them on.

• Winter driving reminders: https://www.nzta.govt.nz/safety/driving-safely/driving-to-the-conditions/winter-driving
• Severe weather outlooks: https://www.metservice.com/warnings/severe-weather-outlook
• Highway reports: https://www.nzta.govt.nz/traffic-and-travel-information/

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