Hours-long wait for hundreds on motorway defended after fatal crash

Authorities have defended their response to a fatal crash on State Highway 1 north of Wellington, after hundreds of motorists were left trapped on the gridlocked motorway for hours.

All Southbound motorway lanes were closed north of Wellington between the Tawa off-ramp and the Glenside on-ramp, after one person was killed and another critically injured in the crash, just before 5pm on Friday.

The closure of the busy section of State Highway 1 caused major delays, with some motorists abandoning their vehicles and crossing the highway or walking along it on foot.

The road re-opened about 11pm on Friday.

One driver told RNZ she got to her Kāpiti home at about 10:30pm after first arriving at the end of Transmission Gully at 5:30pm.

NZTA spokesperson Roxanne Hilliard said she understands the situation was frustrating and inconvenient, but the road couldn't reopen until the police finished gathering evidence, debris was cleared, and damage to the road was repaired.

She confirmed some drivers parked their vehicles on the motorway and walked instead of waiting: "There were nine vehicles left on the motorway after yesterday's crash. Six have now been collected, with three remaining. All of the vehicle owners have been contacted and asked to safely remove the vehicles."

Diversions were put in place following the crash, but hundreds of drivers were already on the motorway and on-ramps and were unable to exit.

"NZTA's thoughts are with the family and friends of the person killed and the person seriously injured," Hilliard said.

"We ask people to understand that these closures are necessary to ensure that the crash scene is safe for police and emergency services to attend and provide assistance to the victims.

"Police are also required to thoroughly investigate serious crashes and gather evidence."

Police asked drivers, including those picking up their vehicles, to take extra care on the road.