Thousands of people have poured into the Waitangi Treaty grounds this morning, leaving traffic snaking back several kilometres.

Vehicles were at a standstill along the back road from Haruru Falls to Waitangi, with the queue stretching back beyond the Mount Bledisloe turnoff.

An RNZ reporter in the area said Waitangi Bridge was closed at 4am so everyone was forced to take the back road which was narrow and unsealed.

He said there didn't appear to be an accident, just a large amount of traffic, including stall holders, using the back roads.