49-573: State Highway 94 is a New Zealand state highway connecting the large Southland town of Gore with one of New Zealand's most popular destinations, Milford Sound . It also passes the significant townships of Lumsden and Te Anau as well going through the Homer Tunnel (in this area it is also called the 'Milford Road', with the section from Te Anau up to the Sound being 119 kilometres or 74 miles). The road also goes through Fiordland and crosses
98-570: A Public Works Department Paymaster; Wilson Campbell's 2000 Novel When stars were brightly shining about a fictional murder in one of the works camps; John Hall-Jones 's, Milford Sound An Illustrated History of the Sound, the Track and the Road , which covers in detail the history of the road with ample historic photographs; and Amy McDonalds 2005 Below the Mountains , a young girl's diary of living on
147-519: A new system, which gives each bridge a single number showing the distance from the start of the highway in hundreds of metres. Under the new system the bridge above would be numbered 2511, as it is 251 km (156 mi) km from the start of the highway. Motorway on- and off-ramps are numbered using the same system. In this way, travellers can accurately assess their location, and road authorities can identify each bridge uniquely. Sometimes, houses with RAPID numbering can also be used to determine
196-537: A route starting at Lake Wakatipu and running northwest, but the decision was instead made to start from Te Anau. However, the project then languished in planning for 40 years, possibly because in 1889 road building had been removed from the brief of the Public Works Department, and only reinstated with much more limited authority in 1909. It took until 1935 to construct a rough road to the entrance of what would become Homer Tunnel . The tunnel itself
245-634: Is a protected area in the South Island of New Zealand consisting of two lakes: North Mavora and South Mavora. The lakes are drained by the Mararoa River . The area is managed by the Department of Conservation , and is part of Te Wahipounamu , a World Heritage Area . The area was used as a film location for The Lord of the Rings film trilogy . The park has a rudimentary campsite and
294-900: Is part of the Te Waipounamu Wilderness Area. The Eglinton Mountains above Lake Gunn were used as a location in the Peter Jackson movie The Fellowship of the Ring where the actors walk along a mountain path with the Key Summit evident in the distance. The mountains here were also used in the Fellowship of the Ring introduction to represent the Misty Mountains . Emily Peak on the Routeburn Track can also be seen in this movie, as well as
343-426: Is prohibited on long stretches due to rock or snow avalanche dangers, and the road is often closed in winter, with the carrying of snow chains mandatory during snow conditions. Helicopters are used during winter to drop explosives onto snow buildup zones above the road in order to cause controlled avalanches. However, this does not eliminate the danger that road traffic may be hit by an uncontrolled event, especially in
392-551: Is prone to avalanches in winter. The road was only opened in 1953, after the Homer Tunnel was finished, after almost 20 years of intermittent work. The road is one of the more dangerous public roads in New Zealand, with injury crash rates around 65% higher than the rest of New Zealand's network, and a fatality crash rate of almost twice average (per vehicle kilometre travelled), making it the third most dangerous section of New Zealand's State Highway network (as of 2008). Stopping
441-612: Is provided for over 300 vehicles, as well as parking for tour buses at the visitor terminal next to the wharf. The Milford Road section began in 1926 when a local Station Owner, started making his own road from Te Anau Downs Harbour south to the Te Anau Hotel, starting a project which turned into the most scenic highway in New Zealand including iconic landmarks the Mirror Lakes , the Avenue of Disappearing Mountain, Lake Gunn ,
490-474: Is regarded as being safer than attempting the road on your own. Avalanches are a winter hazard in the high mountains above the Milford Road and snow and ice affect the road surface in the winter months; transit signs inform motorists of conditions and a Transit New Zealand check point has been built to make sure road users carry chains for safe passage to Milford Sound . Metal gates are positioned across
539-553: Is the highest point of Milford Road at 945 metres (3,100 ft). Although the tunnel is wide enough for two lanes, traffic lights control traffic to one direction at a time over the peak period of the summer months, which can cause delays of up to 20 minutes. At 1,270 metres (4,170 ft) long, Homer Tunnel is the third-longest road tunnel in New Zealand (after the Waterview Tunnel and the Lyttelton road tunnel ). On
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#1732772514610588-664: Is using speed reductions, wire rope barriers , wide centrelines, rumble strips , better warning signs and shoulder widening. State Highway 1 can be considered as a single highway running the length of both main islands, broken in the middle by the ferry connection at Cook Strait . It connects six of the seven largest urban areas and includes the country's busiest stretch of road. Many sections of state highway provided are marketed as tourist highways , sometimes jointly with local roading providers. Transit maintains traffic signs on and near state highways to help promote these routes. These include: Mavora Lakes Mavora Lakes
637-744: The New Zealand Upgrade Programme . Since 2013, the NZTA has used the One Network Road Classification (ONRC) system to classify state highways and local roads. There are five categories for state highways, with an additional sixth category (Access) used only by local roads. The categories are as follows: From 2006 information, the busiest stretch of SH 1 was just south of the Auckland Central Motorway Junction , on/near
686-498: The Key Summit , Mount Christina , Mount Talbot , the Homer Tunnel, The Chasm , Mount Tūtoko and Mitre Peak . Before the sealing of the road in the 1980s, it was treated as a day's adventure from the township of Te Anau and Milford Sound the climax of the journey. Modern marketing and faster buses have made Milford Sound a destination from Queenstown involving 8 hours of bus transit, a round trip with few stops. This route
735-709: The NZ Transport Agency . The highways were originally designated using a two-tier system, national (SH 1 to 8) and provincial, with national highways having a higher standard and funding priorities. Now all are state highways, and the network consists of SH 1 running the length of both islands, SH 2 to 5 and 10 to 59 in the North Island, and SH 6 to 8 and 60 to 99 in the South Island, numbered approximately north to south. State highways are marked by red shield-shaped signs with white numbering (shields for
784-519: The Newmarket Viaduct , with over 200,000 vehicles (either way) each day. The least busy parts of the network (excluding off-ramps and on-ramps) are on SH 43 north-east of Whangamōmona , with fewer than 120 vehicles (counting both directions) in a day. The only remaining unsealed sections of state highway are 12 km (7.5 mi) of SH 43 and 20 km (12 mi) of SH 38 , though 38% of other roads remain unsealed. Every year
833-655: The Main Divide of the Southern Alps . It is regarded as one of the most scenic roads in New Zealand, and with a peak elevation of 940 metres (3,080 ft), the country's third highest highway after the Desert Road ( SH 1 ) and the Lindis Pass ( SH 8 ). However, the "Milford Road" part is also one of the more dangerous public roads in New Zealand, with injury crash rates around 65% higher than
882-627: The Mavora Lakes near Mossburn. Ironically, Peter Jackson picked an area that once contained New Zealand's only place names from J. R. R. Tolkien that was removed from the official maps in the 1980s, as they were deemed inappropriate for this region. There are many places of Local History not signposted by Transit New Zealand , such as the Cleddau Horse Bridge, the Hollyford Hydro Powerstation remains,
931-682: The Milford Road 1935 to 1936. And there are mountain climbing books that cover this area in detail, such as Jack Ede's 1988 "Mountain Men of Milford" and Anita Crozier's 1950 Beyond the Southern Lakes . New Zealand state highway network The New Zealand state highway network is the major national highway network in New Zealand . Nearly 100 roads in the North and South Islands are state highways. All state highways are administered by
980-616: The Milford Road in the Hollyford and Cleddau Valleys when the road is closed at times of peak avalanche probability. The road is closed an average 8 days a year, mainly during the winter months, when the entire length of SH 94 is susceptible to snowfall. Snow can fall on higher parts of the road any time of the year, and due to the nature of the Fiordland environment, the road can be closed at any time of year from landslips, treefalls and washouts. Care should be taken year-round, especially on
1029-536: The NLTP total) in safety, including $ 960m for policing, $ 132m for road safety promotion and $ 103m for rural SH safety. The Safe Roads Alliance is carrying out rural work on SH 1 (Waikato Expressway, Te Teko-Awakeri), SH 1B (Taupiri-Gordonton), SH 3 (Ohaupo-Te Awamutu, Waitomo-Te Kuiti), SH 11 (Airfield-Lily Pond), SH 12 (Dargaville-Tokatoka), SH 16 (Brigham Creek-Waimauku), SH 23 (Hamilton-Raglan), SH 27 (SH 26-SH 24) and SH 34 (SH 30 to Kawerau). The Alliance
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#17327725146101078-644: The National Roads Board, an arm of the Ministry of Works, responsible for the state highway network. From 1989 to 2008, state highways were the responsibility of Transit New Zealand , a Crown entity. In 1996 the funding of the network was removed from the operational functions with the creation of Transfund New Zealand, which then merged with the Land Transport Safety Authority to create Land Transport New Zealand . That
1127-494: The New Zealand Transport Agency produces a booklet titled AADT Data , average annualised daily traffic, that gives traffic volumes on all state highways from their automated vehicle recording system. State highways are marked with posts at irregular intervals giving the distance in kilometres from the start of the highway. Until recently, all bridges on the network had at each end a small plaque showing
1176-799: The Old Homer Tunnel construction village site, however, Transit New Zealand has kept the historic White Mile Posts that are a feature of the early days of the Milford Road Construction. The Department of Conservation has kept up the Latitude 45 South Marker but has abandoned the Avenue of the Disappearing Mountain to history as the avenue of trees beside the Road has become overgrown. Car parks are located at popular stopping points for tourists along Milford Road, such as Mirror Lakes, The Divide (western end of
1225-633: The Routeburn Track), the eastern portal of Homer Tunnel (access to a short loop track), and The Chasm (short walking track to a waterfall). Outside of the Milford Road, Mandeville is the site of the Croydon Aircraft Company Link , and the local aerodrome is home to several rare vintage aircraft. Mossburn is the closest settlement to the Mount White Wind Farm which at full capacity can power almost all
1274-467: The area of the Homer Tunnel portals. There are no petrol stations on the length of the road from Te Anau to Milford Sound, meaning that vehicles need to take enough fuel for a return trip. All of this does not discourage up to 50 coaches and hundreds of private cars daily from making the 546 km trip from the nearest city Invercargill , and the 572 km trip from popular tourist destination Queenstown . Almost 60% of tourists travel via coach, which
1323-590: The closest camping ground to Milford Sound, the road emerges onto the shorelines of Lake Gunn and Lake Fergus . The road then passes through a saddle at "The Divide", where a car park is situated at the end of the Routeburn Track. The Divide marks the line of the Southern Alps' drainage divide between the west coast and the east coast, which at this point is at an altitude of only 532 metres (1,745 ft). Following that pass, Milford Road emerges at
1372-420: The distance from the start of the highway, usually in the form of a number in kilometres, an oblique stroke, and a further number in kilometres, accurate to the nearest 10 metres. A plaque marked 237/14.12, for example, indicated that the bridge was 14.12 km (9 mi) past a set distance post, that post being 237 km (147 mi) from the start of the highway. In about 2004 these plaques were replaced by
1421-483: The early days all roads were managed by local road boards. Initially they were set up by the Provinces. For example, Auckland Province passed a Highways Act in 1862 allowing their Superintendent to define given areas of settlement as Highways Districts, each with a board of trustees elected by the landowners. Land within the boundaries of highway districts became subject to a rate of not more than 1/- an acre, or of 3d in
1470-408: The entire Southland region. The Ōreti , Mataura and Waiau Rivers that dominate the flatter regions of SH 94 between Gore and Te Anau are popular fishing spots for brown trout . Care should be taken while fishing to prevent the spread of Didymosphenia geminata . Tourists to Milford Sound arrive mainly via coach over the length of SH 94 from Mossburn, a predominantly high mountain road which
1519-433: The former provincial highways were blue). Road maps usually number state highways in this fashion. Of the total state highway network, New Zealand currently has 363 km (226 mi) of motorways and expressways with grade-separated access and they carry ten percent of all New Zealand traffic. The majority of the state highway network is made up of single-carriageway roads with one lane each way and at-grade access. In
State Highway 94 (New Zealand) - Misplaced Pages Continue
1568-483: The hillier regions between Mossburn and Milford Sound. Flooding can also occur at any time along the road especially around rivers. Building the Milford Road section of SH 94 has been a classic story of danger, hardship and Kiwi ingenuity in the Depression Years and has been the subject of several books: Harold Anderson's 1975 Men of the Milford Road , a detailed account of the project from his perspective as
1617-412: The link in question. As of 2008, the three least safe sections of the network based on individual risk were State Highway 62 from Spring Creek to Renwick (Marlborough), State Highway 37 to Waitomo Caves and State Highway 94 from Te Anau to Milford Sound . The collective risk is based on the total number of crashes that occurred on the link, which pushes safer but very highly travelled sections of
1666-577: The network to the top of the statistical category. As of 2008, the three least safe sections of the network based on collective risk were all on State Highway 2, on the sections from Napier to Hastings , Mount Maunganui to Paengaroa and Bay View to Napier. Both categories of assessment are to be used as an advisory tool for both drivers to inform them of dangerous road sections as well as to allow traffic controlling authorities to prioritise maintenance and safety improvements. The 2015–18 National Land Transport Programme aimed to invest $ 3.2bn (23% of
1715-403: The network, with a total of 10,856 km of highways separated into 172 links ranging in length from 2.4 km (1 mi) to 318 km (198 mi)). These are graded according to their 'individual risk' and their 'collective risk' based on historical crash data and traffic volumes. The individual risk is based on the likelihood of a single driver experiencing an accident while travelling
1764-581: The northern parts of Gore. Outside of Gore, the highway changes name to Waimea Highway and passes to the north of the Hokonui Hills , a place historically known for illicit moonshine distilling. On the other side of the hills lies Mandeville . The road then veers right and bisects the Waimea Plains to pass through the settlements of Riversdale (where the road names changes to Newcastle Street and then Lumsden Riversdale Highway once leaving
1813-440: The plains as Mossburn Lumsden Highway . The road runs for a further 20 km towards Mossburn , the self-proclaimed deer capital of New Zealand (name change to Devon Street ). Tourist traffic from Queenstown turn onto SH 94 here from SH 97 . Beyond Mossburn, the road changes name to Te Anau Mossburn Highway , and runs underneath a terrace carved by the Ōreti River to the north before passing through more arable farmland and
1862-625: The position. For example, house number 1530 is 15.3 km (10 mi) from the start of the highway. In early 2008, Transit New Zealand unveiled KiwiRAP (the New Zealand Road Assessment Programme) in cooperation with other government agencies and the New Zealand Automobile Association . The system, based on similar programs overseas, categorises New Zealand state highways according to the safety of discrete 'links' (sections of
1911-547: The rest of New Zealand's network, and a fatality crash rate of almost twice average (per vehicle kilometre travelled), making it the third most dangerous section of New Zealand's State Highway network (as of 2008). The road alignment was first surveyed in 1890 by London-born engineer Robert Holmes , who later became the Engineer-in-Chief of the Public Works Department . Holmes initially preferred
1960-483: The road changes name to Luxmore Drive as it proceeds towards the town centre. Once there, the road swings to the right and becomes Milford Road , once outside the town limits the road changes name to Te Anau Milford Highway . The road then hugs the shoreline of Lake Te Anau for about 29 km, skirting the edge of the Fiordland National Park until it reaches Te Anau Downs . From Te Anau Downs,
2009-544: The road veers right and joins the Eglinton Valley . The road then enters the national park (45 km north of Te Anau) and runs parallel to the right side of the Eglinton River for 33 km while it passes through Knobs Flat . A car park at the Mirror Lakes on the northbound side is a popular stopping point for tour buses, as it is roughly halfway between Te Anau and Milford Sound. At Cascade Creek ,
State Highway 94 (New Zealand) - Misplaced Pages Continue
2058-463: The town) and Balfour . The road proceeds in a northwesterly direction to arrive in Lumsden (where it changes name to Flora Road ). From Lumsden, as Flora Road and Five Rivers Lumsden Highway , SH 94 merges with SH 6 and runs concurrently with SH 6 towards Queenstown for 2.5 kilometres between the Ōreti River and the hills to the east before turning left to cross the river and back onto
2107-526: The tunnel, remained gravel-surfaced until the 1980s. Improvements to the Homer Tunnel portals are ongoing and remain on the NZ Transport Agency's plans, with the aim of reducing closures of this important tourist route. The latest construction project to minimise the impact of avalanches was an extension of the western tunnel entrance portal. As of 2020, this is the route SH 94 takes. In Gore , SH 94 begins as Hokonui Drive and passes through
2156-474: The turnoff to go to Mavora Lakes , one of the locations used in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy . After the turnoff, the road heads into the hills and passes through undulating tussocklands and valleys before emerging back onto the plains at The Key . From The Key, the road proceeds on a more-or-less north-westerly direction across the plains before arriving at the lakeside resort of Te Anau . In Te Anau,
2205-620: The upper section of the Hollyford Valley and after turning west descends into that valley to the turn-off point to the Lower Hollyford Road, a gravel road leading north to the start of the Hollyford Track . Continuing from there, the road rises steadily to the head of the valley, a large cirque surrounded by sheer cliffs of the towering mountains around it. This point, at the eastern portal of Homer Tunnel
2254-495: The western side of the tunnel, the road emerges at the head of the Cleddau Valley , a U-shaped valley typical for the valleys and fiords of the west coast of Fiordland. After descending steeply via three hairpin turns, the road follows the valley floor for its last 16 kilometres down to sea level at Milford Sound , passing one last car park at The Chasm along the way. At the road's end at Milford Sound, public car parking
2303-618: The £ of its estimated sale value and that was to be equalled by a grant from the Province. By 1913 the government was collecting £21,000 in duty on cars, but spending £40,000 on roads. The idea of a national network of highways did not emerge until the early twentieth century, when a series of pieces of legislation was passed to allow for the designation of main highways (starting with the Main Highways Act 1922 , followed by gazetting of roads ) and state highways (in 1936). This saw
2352-585: Was done to ensure that funding of state highways was considered on a similar basis to funding for local roads and regional council subsidised public transport. In August 2008, Transit and Land Transport NZ merged to become the NZ Transport Agency. Every five years the NZ Transport Agency will embark on a state highway review to consider whether the existing network should be expanded or reduced, according to traffic flows, changes in industry, tourism and development. From 2009 many new road schemes were classed as Roads of National Significance and, from 2020, as part of
2401-556: Was excavated by pick and shovel, mostly by workers directed there by the government during the Great Depression. Life for the workers was harsh, and avalanches claimed some lives in the mid 1930s. While the breakthrough was achieved in February 1940, the labour shortage caused by World War II caused significant delays, and it was not until 1953 that the tunnel was finally completed. Long stretches of Milford Road, including
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