Shaving 11 minutes off a daily commute is enough to be excited for in Auckland, where a stretch of a motorway north of the city quietly opened to avoid congestion.
The $880 million Pūhoi to Warkworth road took seven years to complete and it was already busy after opening at 5am this morning, with heavy traffic northbound.
In Warkworth, drivers were excited to try out the new road.
"It's fantastic," a truck driver said. "It's a lot quicker, smoother. It's a great motorway."
Another driver said: "It's going to be much better than what we had, it saved me quite a bit of time coming through this morning."
The 18.5 kilometre stretch of the Northern Motorway had two lanes going each way and a median barrier. It was intended to improve safety for people driving to Whangārei, with a straighter route.
The new road cost $880 million. Photo: SUPPLIED / Waka Kotahi
The stretch was also helping drivers to skip the infamously tricky Hill Street intersection at Warkworth.
Dairy Flat resident Castin has driven the Northern Motorway for seven years and said it would be a much less stressful drive for trucks, commuters, and people heading north for holidays.
"It was a beautiful drive this morning. Straight through at 100kmh and you hit the northern end of Warkworth.
"No Hill Street to navigate, no dodgy corners like it were when driving up State Highway 1 before. It's just magic to finally have it open," Castin said.
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins opened the road late last week. Photo: SUPPLIED / Waka Kotahi
Truck driver Rodney had just finishing crossing the new road and said it was a smooth ride, without a single pothole in sight.
"I just finished driving it on the truck. It's very nice and smooth. The car wasn't jumping up and down. It's way safer, and way better."
More than 35,000 vehicles are expected to travel the stretch of road every day, including 1300 trucks.
But one Warkworth resident said the works should be extended further north.
"The new motorway is only between here [Warkworth] and Orewa, which is good, yeah.
"But if you are going north of Dome Valley, it's a shocking road, very dangerous. More needs to be done there."
Commuters were positive about the new stretch of motorway. Photo: SUPPLIED / Waka Kotahi
Work on the new stretch of the motorway will be continuing over the next few months to finish on and off-ramps at Pūhoi and landscaping along the sides of the road.
In a statement, Waka Kotahi regional manager of maintenance of operations Jacqui Hori-Hoult said she was pleased with how the network was flowing.
"We're getting great feedback about the positive difference that the new route is having across the network, for both people and freight.
"With the bulk of journeys being made on State Highway 1, we expect to see ongoing improvements to safety, access and journeys for communities north of Auckland."
Hori-Hoult said it would take time for patterns to settle and Waka Kotahi anticipated a slight increase in vehicles using the state highway today.
"People should be aware that the roads are likely to be very busy this week, as many people will take the opportunity to drive on the new road.
"But initial signs of how the network is working, and the wider benefits that Ara Tūhono - Pūhoi to Warkworth is bringing to the Northland region, are extremely positive."
More than 35,000 vehicles are expected to travel the stretch of road every day, including 1300 trucks.