• Traffic is expected to worsen as holidaymakers travel for Auckland Anniversary weekend, with heavy congestion predicted.
• MetService forecasts rain and strong winds for central and northern regions on Saturday and Sunday.
• Monday is expected to be clearer, with temperatures reaching to 25C in Auckland.

Traffic is tipped to worsen travelling out of Auckland over the coming hours and into the long weekend as Kiwis flock to holiday hotspots in preparation for Auckland Anniversary weekend.

And the weather may worsen into the weekend, with forecasters predicting a low-pressure system will approach New Zealand from the northwest, bringing rain and warm humid nights.

New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi’s holiday journey planner predicts traffic heading northbound out of Auckland would start to get busy from about 11am today.

It was expected to remain busy on State Highway 1 between Pūhoi and Wellsford through to 4pm, before being at its heaviest between 4pm and 7.30pm.

Meanwhile, traffic between the two towns is also tipped to be heavy from 9am to 3.30pm on Saturday.

Holidaymakers planning on returning to Auckland on Monday could be in for long queues, with NZTA predicting heavy traffic from 10am to 7pm. The heaviest traffic would be from 3.30pm to 5.30pm.

Traffic on Auckland’s Southern Motorway had already started building as of 1pm today, with heavy traffic backed up over 15km from Spaghetti Junction to Papatoetoe.

Meanwhile, MetService forecasts widespread rain and strong northerly winds for central and northern regions on Saturday, continuing into Sunday as the low moves across the North Island.

Showers are tipped for Saturday and Sunday across most of the North Island, followed by a finer day on Monday.

“It’s going to be quite a wet weekend. We’re also looking at highs of 25C and 24C for Auckland, sort of about average for January,” MetService meteorologist Ngaire Wotherspoon said.

MetService is tipping hot and muggy nights for the North Island, with overnight lows of 16 to 19C.

The pattern remains the same at seaside holiday escapes around Auckland. Northland has a similar bleak forecast to the City of Sails, as does the Coromandel, Bay of Plenty and Waikato.

“Monday is the day to be out and about for regions observing Auckland Anniversary Day, as the low moves away and skies clear,” Wotherspoon said.

“A strong southerly flow keeps a lid on temperatures to start, but winds weaken as the day progresses.”