A former mayor and top cop says the more than four-hour closure of Auckland’s Northern Motorway after a serious crash involving an allegedly stolen car seems “excessive” but police were probably in a difficult position.

One man was arrested after allegedly stealing a car in a central Auckland suburb before fleeing across the harbour bridge and coming to a halt after a multi-vehicle crash on State Highway 1 near Silverdale on Sunday afternoon.

The crash closed the Northern Motorway for about 4.5 hours, causing gridlocked traffic and stranding thousands of motorists queued in their vehicles. Nobody was seriously injured.

Devonport-Takapuna Local Board member and former police inspector George Wood said it seemed “an excessive amount of time” for the motorway to have all northbound lanes closed around the crash scene but did not know the entire reason behind the decision.

Wood, who was in the police force for 32 years before serving three terms as the North Shore mayor, said officers must collect all available information at the scene or face severe consequences.

“If they don’t do a thorough job then they’ll be subject to dereliction of duty.

“This is the most severe disciplinary action they would have to face as a police officer.”

Traffic was backed up to Albany after Police closed the Northern Motorway south of Silverdale after a two-car crash. Photo / Hayden Woodward

AA spokesman Martin Glynn said the closure “must have been extraordinarily frustrating for motorists”.

"Thousands of people were caught up in the delay. And just not knowing how long they’ll be waiting […] must have been probably the most frustrating thing of all.”

Glynn added it was difficult to tell if the length of the closure was acceptable without knowing what the police investigation required.

“I think they would have been very mindful of the gridlock, it would’ve been staring at them in their faces.

“They do have to gather all the evidence they can while the road’s closed. There’s very little they can do afterwards.”

NZTA Waka Kotahi said the motorway reopened about 7.15pm. Photo / Hayden Woodward

North Shore councillor Chris Darby said police considered the crash “very serious”, worked closely with NZTA Waka Kotahi and Auckland Transport, and chose to “safely undertake” their response.

Darby said there was “significant backlog” and his family was among the thousands caught in the delay.

“But I think people, if they understand the situation, they’re quite accepting of this disruption.

“There was good reason for the road to be closed, and for the period of closure, to ensure that the police could thoroughly undertake their investigation safely.

“Having live traffic while police are undertaking their investigation puts police at risk.”

The police and police association have been approached for comment.