A burst water pipe has flooded much of Kent Terrace in central Wellington.
Contractors were at the scene before 5am on Wednesday.
Motorists were being warned to take care in the area.
Cyclists ride through layers of silt as contractors put traffic management in place on Wednesday. Photo: Bill Hickman/RNZ
Wellington Water said it was a major repair and was expected to take 8 -10 hours to fix.
It was asking motorists heading to the city's airport to go via Oriental Bay.
"At this stage, we don't expect a shutdown to affect any properties but will provide more information as the repair progresses."
Flooding on Kent Terrace. Photo: Bill Hickman/RNZ
In a statement just before 7am, Wellington Water asked people to avoid the area while traffic management was put in place.
"If not please expect delays. We appreciate that this is a main route, so are doing all we can to minimise impact on commuters."
Water was covering nearly three lanes of the road and parts of adjacent Kent Terrace near the northern entrance to the Basin Reserve.
Just before 5am, the main was still pumping water into the street which had reach a depth of nearly 30cm in the centre of the road.
