15 September 2026
How are weather and climate events disrupting AA Members’ local travel?
Insights from AA Members on weather and climate impacts on local transport, from the AA State of Aotearoa’s Local Transport Survey 2026
Severe weather and climate-related disruption have become a more visible part of everyday travel across New Zealand, with weather warnings becoming increasingly frequent.
We wanted to understand what this actually looks like for AA Members on the ground: how many have had their travel disrupted by weather or climate events in the past year, what kind of disruption they've faced, and where in the country it's being felt most.
This is part of a series of reports on the state of New Zealand's local transport.
The results in this report are based on responses from 8,336 AA Members randomly invited to participate, as well as members of the AA Member Voices panel. A total of 163,748 Members were invited to take part, resulting in a 5% response rate. The maximum margin of error at the 95% confidence level is approximately ±1.1%. The survey was conducted in May 2026.
Key findings
AA Members’ views on the state of roads
More than half of AA Members have had their travel disrupted by weather or climate events in the past year
- Just over half of Members (54%) experienced weather- or climate-related disruption to their travel in the past 12 months.
Rural Members are far more exposed than those in central city and suburban areas
- Two-thirds of rural Members (66%) have been affected by a weather or climate event, compared with around half of Members in central city and suburban areas (51%).
Wellington, Wairarapa and Northland have been hit hardest overall
- Around 7 in 10 Members in Wellington (72%), Wairarapa (72%) and Northland (75%) have had their travel disrupted by weather in the past year – well above the national average.
- In contrast, fewer than 3 in 10 Members in North Otago (29%) have experienced any weather-related travel disruption, and South Canterbury (37%) and Canterbury (42%) are also below the national average.
Flooding is the most common cause of disruption, closely followed by poor visibility and road closures
- More than a quarter of Members have been affected by flooding (28%), extreme weather affecting visibility or safety (26%), or slips and road closures (26%).
Which type of disruption is most common depends heavily on where you live
- Northland leads the country on flooding, slips and road damage, while Wellington leads on public transport disruption and poor visibility..
Impacts of weather and climate events on local travel
Over half of AA Members experienced at least one disruption to their local travel due to severe weather or climate events
Fifty-four percent of Members have had a weather or climate event disrupt their travel in the past 12 months. That ranges from around 3 in 10 Members in the least-affected districts up to around 3 in 4 in the worst-affected.
Where you live makes a big difference to how likely you are to have been affected:
- Wellington (72%), Wairarapa (72%) and Northland (75%) are the hardest-hit districts, all with around 7 in 10 Members affected. Bay of Plenty (67%) and Taranaki (66%) were not far behind.
- North Otago (29%), South Canterbury (37%) and Canterbury (42%) have been affected less than the rest of the country.
Rural and urban Members have had very different experiences too:
- Two-thirds of rural Members (66%) have been affected by weather or climate events, compared with around half of Members in central city and suburban areas (51%).
Flooding is the most common event to disrupt Members' travel, closely followed by poor visibility and road closures
Flooding was the most common event to disrupt people’s local travel, affecting more than a quarter of Members (28%). This was followed closely by extreme weather affecting visibility or safety (26%) and slips or road closures (26%). Damage to roads or footpaths affected 23% of Members, and 1 in 10 (10%) had a public transport disruption because of weather. Extreme heat was the least common issue, affecting just 1% of Members.
The type of travel disruption due to severe weather depends on where you live, and it isn't always the same district topping every category.
- Northland leads the country on flooding (56%), slips or road closures (54%) and road damage (47%) – in each case, about twice the national rate.
- Wellington leads on a different pair of measures entirely: public transport disruption (30%, by far the highest in the country) and extreme weather affecting visibility (40%).
- Wairarapa also stands out across several categories, including flooding (53%) and public transport disruption (20%).
Rural and urban Members experience quite different types of disruption, not just different amounts of it.
- Rural Members are far more likely to have experienced flooding (40% vs 24% in central city and suburban areas), slips or road closures (43% vs 21%), and road damage (34% vs 20%).
- Public transport disruption flips this pattern entirely – rural Members are far less likely to be affected (5%) than those in central city and suburban areas (12%), likely because rural areas have much less public transport to disrupt.
- The gap is much smaller for poor visibility, where rural Members are only modestly more affected (30% vs 25%).
About the AA State of Local Transport Survey 2026
The results in this report are based on responses from 8,336 AA Members who participated in the AA State of Local Transport 2026 survey. The survey was sent to a random sample of AA Members, including the members of the AA Member Voices Panel. A total of 163,748 AA Members were invited to participate, resulting in a 5.09% response rate. The maximum margin of error at the 95% confidence level is approximately ±1.1%. The survey was conducted between 29 April and 26 May 2026..
The survey explored AA Members' views on local transport across driving, walking, cycling and public transport, including road maintenance, road safety, and satisfaction with getting around their local area.
Results have been weighted to be representative of AA Membership by age, gender, and AA district. Percentages may not always add to 100% due to rounding.
See What AA Members think about local transport options and priorities for details about the 2025 survey.
These findings highlight the importance of road maintenance to AA Members. While satisfaction with road condition has improved since 2025, many Members remain dissatisfied with the condition of their local roads, and more than half reported experiencing an impact from poor road maintenance. These impacts were particularly common in some rural areas and districts.
The results help inform the AA's advocacy and policy positions, alongside research evidence, policy analysis, and input from AA District Councils across New Zealand. They also provide context for the AA's transport priorities and the issues Members believe require ongoing attention.
The AA State of Aotearoa's Local Transport Survey covers a range of transport issues affecting AA Members.
Media contact and further information
- For media enquiries, please contact the AA Manager of Research, Safety & Communications Dylan Thomsen, +64 4 931 9991
- For information about the survey or further results, get in touch with our team at membervoices@aa.co.nz.
- Visit the AA Transport Surveys to find out more about the survey programme.