This new 7.5km toll road extends the Northern Motorway from the Orewa turnoff to Puhoi, bypassing the seaside townships of Orewa, Hatfield's Beach, Waiwera and the Wenderholm Regional Park. Depending on traffic volume and the number of slow vehicles, this road will cut 10 - 30 minutes off the non toll route. The Johnstone’s Hill Twin Tunnels are 15 metres apart, 380 metres long, 12 metres wide and 9 metres high. They are built to carry two lanes each, plus a shoulder and an emergency pathway. The northbound tunnel has only one lane open due to the merging of traffic into a single lane after the tunnel. The southbound tunnel has two lanes. Opened January 25, 2009, it passes through a historically rich and diverse landscape containing steep topography, large tracts of native bush, streams, estuaries and areas of pastoral farmland. Eco-viaducts at Otanerua and Nukumea were built to protect native aquatic fauna and natural wetlands. There are views of the Puhoi river back to Wenderholm and the ocean and Hatfield's Beach as you travel the road. When using the road our recommendation is that you pay for the journey either before you leave or after the journey. You can pay for the trip up to 72 hours after you travelled the road with on line or by calling a toll free number. this payment can include advance payment of your return journey. If you have time to spare or only have the option to pay cash for the toll road use, we recommend you take the slower non toll route. The road from the Orewa turnoff heads to the coast, up a hill with views over Orewa beach, along side Hatfield's beach and up another hill with a short passing lane into Waiwera. You cross a bridge over the Puhoi river, past Wenderholm Regional Park, up another hill with a short passing lane and down to merge with the Toll Road traffic as it exits Johnston's Hill tunnel. Be prepared to stop when approaching the tunnel northbound during busy periods as the two lanes merge into one. The NZ National government is fast tracking the expansion of the single lane highway north of the tunnels to a continuous dual carriageway through to Warkworth and then on to Wellsford.

A fully electronic toll collection (ETC) system is utilised to collect the tolls. Cameras using Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology read the front and rear registration plates and identify the owner should an account not exist or payment within the due period is not received. A registered owner lookup permits an administration charge and later a non payment fine to be issued. Although the vehicle speed is recorded going under the camera gantry, the vehicle occupants cannot be identified and any speed violation data and processed plate details cannot legally be passed to other law enforcement agencies.

You can pay by phone 0800 40 20 20 or on line at https://tolling.nzta.govt.nz/PurchaseTripPass.aspx  Simply enter the car registration number and the total number of trips. You can pay up to 180 days in advance and up to 5 days after a journey.  Payment by Visa and MasterCard only but there is no surcharge for credit card payment. The cash payment machines are unreliable and often have long queues. It is quicker to continue and use the non toll road than to stop and use the kiosks. If you must you the cash payment terminals they are located northbound inside the BP service centre rest area on the Northern Motorway between Albany and Silverdale. Southbound is 500 metres prior to the tunnel on the left next to the river.

In New Zealand the issuing of speeding tickets to generally law abiding drivers is a major source of government revenue. The ticket tolerance is 10km/hr so doing 111km/hr or more on the open road (even when using a passing lane or completing an overtaking maneuver is fair game).

The New Zealand Police highway patrols frequent the motorway around the Silverdale and Orewa hidden up the on ramps. Be careful when northbound on the toll road down the last hill just prior to the tunnel and just after exiting the tunnel southbound where they like to park.

Unmarked speed camera vans can be found at many locations between Auckland and the Paihia turnoff, typically on or at the end of straight stretches of road and passing lanes. Look ahead for speed camera vehicles (unmarked Mitsubishi L300 as shown opposite and 2008 model Toyota Previa vans) parked at the roadside in suspicious locations. These can snap you traveling in either direction with new digital speed cameras. The low power narrow beam across the road provides minimal advance warning only to the best radar detectors such as Escort Passport and Valentine 1 but these must now have K band reception activated to detect the new digital cameras. The cameras are not the same as the UK police's ANPR (Automatic Number Plate Recognition) system. Operators can monitor and adjust the image to better read the plate but the data is processed manually at a later date.

Highway patrol and traffic duty police vehicles have instant on Ka band Stalker radars, often hiding well off the road with lights turned off at night. These radars can lock on a vehicle coming up behind the patrol or from the opposite direction. Most officers have great pleasure using the instant on feature - waiting until a vehicle is close before activating the radar for an instant reading. This reduces the effectiveness of radar detectors. Unmarked radar equipped Holden Commodores and occasionally Nissan Maximas and Honda Accords are used on the route. Make sure you carry a NZ or overseas drivers license on you just in case.