Franklin's Worst Pothole Roads — Ararimu Rd Tops AT's Own Data
- PotholeExpert
- Jun 11
- 4 min read
Auckland's rural south carries the region's second-heaviest pothole load. Franklin logged 5,569 pothole dispatches between January 2024 and June 2026 in Auckland Transport's own records — behind only Rodney — across the network that ties Pukekohe, Waiuku, Clevedon, Awhitu and the southern lifestyle belt together.
The numbers come from AT's complete dispatch log, released to us under LGOIMA (case CAS-1344360-H7J1V4). This is the Franklin cut: the 15 most pothole-plagued roads in the district, the response-time record (which is genuinely strong), and the one stat every Franklin road user should plan around — winter dispatches here run 2.19× the rest of the year, the sharpest pothole season anywhere in Auckland.
Region-wide context — Rodney's 86% bin rate, Central's missed targets, the $4.87M claims bill — is in the full data breakdown and the hotspots league table.
The 15 worst pothole roads in Franklin (AT's own data, Jan 2024 – Jun 2026)
Ranked by pothole dispatches recorded in AT's log over 29 months:
Ararimu Rd — 161 dispatches, 25% closed no-action
Clevedon-Kawakawa Rd (Clevedon) — 145 dispatches, 22% closed no-action
Whitford-Maraetai Rd (Whitford) — 142 dispatches, 35% closed no-action
Papakura/Clevedon Rd — 126 dispatches, 44% closed no-action
Waiuku Rd (Waiuku) — 111 dispatches, 38% closed no-action
Cape Hill Rd (Pukekohe) — 94 dispatches, 28% closed no-action
Awhitu Rd (Awhitu Peninsula) — 82 dispatches, 9% closed no-action
Kingseat Rd (Kingseat) — 75 dispatches, 16% closed no-action
Whitford Rd (Whitford) — 72 dispatches, 19% closed no-action
McNicol Rd — 69 dispatches, 25% closed no-action
Whitford Park Rd — 67 dispatches, 12% closed no-action
Harris St (Pukekohe) — 62 dispatches, 3% closed no-action
Logan Rd (Buckland) — 62 dispatches, 11% closed no-action
Alfriston Rd (Ardmore) — 61 dispatches, 21% closed no-action
Sutton Rd (Opaheke) — 61 dispatches, 25% closed no-action
Method: Auckland Transport pothole dispatch log, released under LGOIMA (case CAS-1344360-H7J1V4, 9 June 2026) — 26,863 records, 1 January 2024 to 3 June 2026, as recorded by AT. "Closed no-action" = AT status "No Action Required": closed with no repair recorded. AT formally declined (LGOIMA s17(e)) to provide reasons — it holds no reason breakdown. Road names as they appear in AT's log. Full regional analysis in our AT pothole data breakdown and the interactive AT Pothole Index.
Franklin's split personality: heavy load, strong response
Two things are simultaneously true in Franklin's data. The load is brutal — 5,569 dispatches is more than Central Auckland and the North Shore's urban core combined. And the response record is among Auckland's best: 98.4% of dispatches met their response target, median response 1.2 hours on completed public reports, and only 27.8% of public reports closed with no repair recorded — a fraction of Rodney's 85.9% and below the regional average of 45.7%. On our Report Card grading, Franklin earns an A−.
The spend tells the same story from another angle: $712,718 in itemised claims over 29 months — and that's an undercount, because AT pays Franklin's contractor a monthly lump sum that the released data excludes. Real money, climbing region-wide at 26% a year.
The 2.19× winter: Auckland's sharpest pothole season
Franklin's defining stat is seasonal. Winter months (June–September) average 2.19× the dispatch rate of the rest of the year — the steepest winter multiplier in Auckland (the regional figure is 1.77×). July 2025 alone logged 548 Franklin dispatches. The mechanism — saturated basecourse, stiff cold bitumen, unchanged axle loads from stock trucks and quarry traffic — is laid out in our pothole season analysis.
Practical translation: damage on a Franklin road — or a Franklin driveway — compounds fastest in exactly the weeks we're entering now. A defect that's a depression in early June is routinely an open hole by August. The repair-cost ladder only goes up: see the early-warning signs in what water pooling means and alligator cracking.
Lifestyle blocks, farm entrances, commercial yards: the private half of the problem
Franklin's mix — lifestyle blocks off metal-edged seal, equestrian properties around Clevedon and Ardmore, packhouse and depot yards around Pukekohe — means a lot of privately owned asphalt taking the same hammering as the public network. AT's responsibility ends at the road reserve; the driveway, the yard and the entrance past the crossing are the owner's.
We repair those at a fixed price from photos: asphalt pothole repair across Franklin — Pukekohe, Waiuku, Clevedon, Papakura and the rural belt between. Commercial yards and carparks: scope the season's work with the property manager's carpark guide before the July peak fills every crew's calendar.
Frequently asked questions
Which Franklin road has the most potholes?
Ararimu Rd — 161 pothole dispatches in AT's records between January 2024 and June 2026, ahead of Clevedon-Kawakawa Rd (145) and Whitford-Maraetai Rd (142). Twenty of Auckland's 25 worst pothole roads are in rural Rodney or Franklin.
Is AT slow at fixing potholes in Franklin?
No — the data says the opposite. 98.4% of Franklin dispatches met their response target, with a median response of 1.2 hours on completed public reports. Franklin also has one of Auckland's lowest rates of reports closed without repair (27.8%).
When is pothole season in Franklin?
June to September, and more sharply than anywhere else in Auckland — winter dispatches run 2.19× the rest of the year in AT's data. July 2025 was the worst month on record with 548 dispatches in the district. Book private repairs in June, before the peak.
Who fixes potholes on a lifestyle block driveway near Pukekohe or Clevedon?
The owner — AT maintains public roads only; everything past your boundary or vehicle crossing is private. Send photos through our quote form for a fixed price within 24 hours, anywhere in Franklin.
Franklin's winter surge is the steepest in Auckland and it starts now. Public road: report it to AT — their Franklin response record is genuinely good. Your driveway, yard or entrance: photos via the photo-quote form, fixed price back within 24 hours.
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