Wellington motorway slip cleared

A landslip that spilled over State Highway 2, north of Wellington has been cleared, however traffic remained backed up as rush hour began.

The slip, at 3.15pm, blocked a northbound lane of the motorway, causing serious delays.

Cars were backed as far as The Terrace tunnel, and up the Ngauranga Gorge.

The slip happened in the same place, south of Petone, as another, which closed northbound lanes last month, causing widespread disruption.

About 50 cubic metres - about six truckloads of debris  fell in that slip.

NZTA spokesman Mark Owen said today's slip was cleared by 4.30pm.

However the traffic backlog meant roads were still congested.

The slip was not las large as last months, he said.

Workers would be on site tonight cleaning up what remained of the rubble before work on strengthening the cliff face began.

Officials had already been working on measures to ensure commuters were not so seriously affected in the future, though the solutions were still some time away.

- © Fairfax NZ News