One person died after a single-vehicle crash in Auckland’s Papatoetoe last night. The crash occurred on Puhinui Rd and was reported to police shortly after 10 p.m.
Fatal Crash in Papatoetoe
The sole occupant of the vehicle was taken to a hospital with critical injuries and died shortly after arrival, according to a police spokesperson. The serious crash unit examined the scene, and an investigation into the circumstances of the crash is underway.
The death brings the provisional road toll for the 2025/2026 Christmas holiday period to seven. This toll covers deaths between 4 p.m. on December 24 and 6 a.m. today, a peak travel time.
Last year’s Christmas holiday period saw 15 road deaths, while 22 were recorded the year before.
Director of Road Policing Superintendent Steve Greally described the decrease in the road toll as “encouraging,” but emphasized that “seven deaths [are] still too many.” He acknowledged the profound impact on affected families, stating they have “lost loved ones, for no good reason, and instead of being able to celebrate during this holiday season, their lives have been changed forever.”
Superintendent Greally highlighted the increased police enforcement through Operation Open Roads over the past three years, focusing on high-speed and high-risk areas of the road network, as a likely contributing factor to the lowered toll.
“We’re not going to celebrate until we have zero deaths on our roads, but this is trending in the right direction,” he said.
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