Australian Motorways

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crazyknightsfan
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by crazyknightsfan »

Enceladus wrote: Thu Nov 07, 2019 02:25 Looks like a superb section of new motorway. :) I presume it will take a lot of traffic pressure off Toowoomba and the existing route.

Just out of interest, is there a major programme of motorway construction in Australia currently? I was under the impression, given its huge area and the sparse population outside the major cities, that motorways were largely confined to areas in and around these cities. Are any major cities, like Sydney and Melbourne, actually fully connected by motorway at this stage?

What are the long-term plans and goals? What is the total length of motorway and D2 in Australia now. Are any maps available online that shows the location and lengths of these routes?
Peter Freeman has put together some good maps of motorways/quasi-motorways for Australian cities in this thread: viewtopic.php?f=7&t=40170

Sydney and Melbourne are connected by a continuous dual carriageway but it's not completely motorway. In the Victorian section it is a 'Freeway' (which has specific legal restrictions ala UK motorways) but there are many at-grade intersections. In the NSW section the first ~130km south from Sydney is a proper freeway, then after that it is an ordinary dual carriageway but with hard shoulders and occasional grade separations.

Sydney to Brisbane is the main project at the moment - again a mixture of motorway and ordinary dual carriageway. Most sections built within the last 10 years are proper motorways on new alignments or with LARs, but older duplication projects were generally built as on-line upgrades with direct property access and at-grade intersections. All our dual carriageways get built with hard shoulders. The Pacific Highway Upgrade website has the current progress at 82% complete - that's for continuous dual carriageway, and includes a few sets of traffic lights on the outskirts of Newcastle and through Coffs Harbour.
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by sydneynick »

The problem with converting the main long-distance roads to motorway is the need to maintain access to properties along the route. On the Sydney-Melbourne road, the 35 km from Sydney to Liverpool is new urban motorway, with many local roads as alternative routes. The 85 km from Liverpool to just beyond Bowral was new build through country that was mostly uninhabited bushland, so no property access was needed.

But from there to the Victorian border, doubling the road has mostly been achieved by adding an extra two lane carriageway to convert an S2 to D2. For the D2 to become an M2, it would be necessary to build an S2 access road on each side of the motorway - an expensive proposition for 400 km of road.
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by linuxrocks »

Gav wrote: Fri Nov 28, 2014 07:25 And they also allow bikes not on lane three though.... ;-)
In South Australia, bikes were allowed on the South Eastern Freeway until the Crafers exit (the first). Riding up there was damn scarey, especially the Devils Elbow. Coming down was worse, often resulting in smoking brake blocks! With the opening of the Heysen Tunnels, which bypasses the Devils Elbow, bike now have their own lane, which I think eventually finds its way onto the old road. I'm going back at Christmas and if I can borrow a bike, I'll have a look.

Here is a link to the start of the bike track. The octagonal building is the old Toll House, which operated from 1841 to 1847. https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-34.964 ... 312!8i6656
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by Peter Freeman »

sydneynick wrote: Thu Nov 07, 2019 10:15 For the D2 to become an M2, it would be necessary to build an S2 access road on each side of the motorway - an expensive proposition for 400 km of road.
And this is the thing to keep in mind for AU inter-city road construction - the major cities are far apart: Perth-Adelaide 2700km, Adelaide-Mel 730, Mel-Syd 900, Syd-Bris 900.

One result is that most inter-city passenger travel is by air (Mel-Syd is the world's second busiest 2-city air route), but freight goes by road (except for rail transport of bulk commodities: coal, grain, iron-ore, etc). We have very large trucks: road-trains in Central Australia, but B-doubles and B-triples on other routes. This is what our inter-city roads are really for.

When I arrived in AU in the mid-70's duplication of the Hume Highway Mel-Syd had just begun. It took 35 years to complete. In the last 20 years the Pacific Hwy Syd-Brisbane has been the focus (see the link in a post above). The current project is Woolgoolga-to-Ballina, which will complete the duplication by next year (edit: it WAS completed in early 2020). It is 155km of motorway in one go: that's the same length as M4 London-Bristol. Of course it's D2M not D3M, but it is high standard and built through some difficult terrain. The most common GSJ type is a 2-roundabout dumbbell. The Pacific Hwy will then still have a few lower-grade D2 sections to improve.

So the answer to Enceladus's question "is there a major programme of motorway construction in Australia currently" is yes. I believe AU spends more per capita on roads than the UK, much of it to fight this distance problem.

(edited to remove dead links)
Last edited by Peter Freeman on Mon Jul 17, 2023 11:30, edited 2 times in total.
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Enceladus
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by Enceladus »

Thanks for all that great info, guys. So it looks like there is a robust motorway programme in Australia - which according to stats is growing and developing rapidly the past decade. So all the major cities are well catered by motorways, Melbourne and Sydney are now connected by motowway/dual carriageway and soon Brisbane and Sydney will be similarly connected.

Cant wait to travel on some of these roads when I finally get over to Oz. :D
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by Peter Freeman »

If you do make it to Oz, this is a nice little piece of road to drive (built because the cliff continually fell down onto several versions of the original route) -
https://www.visitnsw.com/destinations/s ... iff-bridge
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_Cliff_Bridge
https://www.boral.com.au/projects/sea-cliff-bridge

The M1 motorway northwards from Sydney is also an impressive drive -
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pacific_M ... Newcastle)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OIEpdxe ... e=emb_logo
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by RoadsMaps »

Enceladus wrote: Sat Nov 09, 2019 22:05 Thanks for all that great info, guys. So it looks like there is a robust motorway programme in Australia - which according to stats is growing and developing rapidly the past decade. So all the major cities are well catered by motorways, Melbourne and Sydney are now connected by motowway/dual carriageway and soon Brisbane and Sydney will be similarly connected.

Cant wait to travel on some of these roads when I finally get over to Oz. :D
The A8 / M8 Western Highway upgrade to dual carriageway project is interesting too. When complete, it will mean half of the 700km Melbourne - Adelaide route is dual carriageway (with much of it grade separated freeway standard).
https://roadprojects.vic.gov.au/project ... rn-highway
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by Berk »

Well, I travelled some of this yesterday (from Keith, SA up to Mt Barker, then on to Adelaide today); last week I travelled a fair bit of the Hume Highway and Federal Highway too.

It has to be said that what Australia and NZ call “motorways” in no way resemble British motorways (outside of urban areas, at least). Even when they do, there are significant differences.

The more rural routes have frequent “rest areas” - basically lay-bys with picnic areas, sometimes with toilets etc, and do have frequent signs encouraging drivers to use them. You’ll also see services (or “service centres”, as they are called) - about every 30kms or so.

As for the rural highways/freeways, they could more accurately be said to resemble our older, but reasonably high standard dual carriageways (such as unmodernised parts of the English A1).

The central reserve would resemble the A1 between Stamford and Peterborough (or formerly down to Alconbury), and the alignment varies somewhat.

Whilst driving in Victoria state (and NSW), it was notable that the maximum freeway (and S2) limit was only 100km/h. Moving over to South Australia, and I was pleasantly surprised to see the limit rise to 110km/h - even on rural S2’s. That’s not to say a lower limit won’t occasionally be posted (but not every settlement has been bypassed, so quite understandable).

Farm accesses and at-grade right turns are still very common. I actually decided not to turn off at Collector (a village on the way to Canberra), because accessing the local services involved a right turn.

There’s another thing - Aussie roads often have right-hand lane drops, or off-slips.
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by crazyknightsfan »

Berk wrote: Wed Dec 18, 2019 12:31As for the rural highways/freeways, they could more accurately be said to resemble our older, but reasonably high standard dual carriageways (such as unmodernised parts of the English A1).

The central reserve would resemble the A1 between Stamford and Peterborough (or formerly down to Alconbury), and the alignment varies somewhat.
The major differences I've observed (as an Aussie looking at UK motorways/D2s) is that Aussie roads have continuous hard shoulders almost all the time whereas the A1, for example, does not.
Berk wrote: Wed Dec 18, 2019 12:31Whilst driving in Victoria state (and NSW), it was notable that the maximum freeway (and S2) limit was only 100km/h. Moving over to South Australia, and I was pleasantly surprised to see the limit rise to 110km/h - even on rural S2’s. That’s not to say a lower limit won’t occasionally be posted (but not every settlement has been bypassed, so quite understandable).
All rural freeways have 110km/h limits in Aus, as do the D2 parts of the Hume Highway which have at-grade crossings. Some major S2 highways in western NSW and western QLD also have 110km/h limits.
Berk wrote: Wed Dec 18, 2019 12:31Farm accesses and at-grade right turns are still very common. I actually decided not to turn off at Collector (a village on the way to Canberra), because accessing the local services involved a right turn.

There’s another thing - Aussie roads often have right-hand lane drops, or off-slips.
Right turns into Collector are reasonably safe due to the much lower traffic volumes, and nice wide central reservation (~10m+). I don't think you missed much in Collector though, there's not much there!
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by Berk »

Sorry, yes, forgot about the higher Hume Highway limit. Again, I was pleasantly surprised to see how open and free-flowing the road was.

Both on Thursday and Saturday afternoons when I travelled, pretty much had the road to myself. Made the driving much more relaxed.

The Western Freeway heading to Melbourne was slightly busier, but still had a good run in (until hitting the roadworks). Even Melbourne CBD was stress-free.

Currently in the air en route to Tasmania. Don’t think there’s much motorway there. :)
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by crazyknightsfan »

Berk wrote: Thu Dec 19, 2019 05:45Currently in the air en route to Tasmania. Don’t think there’s much motorway there. :)
No formal motorways but there are some sections of grade-separated D2, particularly around Launceston, Devonport and Hobart.
The Midland Highway (Launceston-Hobart) has also had a lot of work done over the past 5 years - mostly S2+1 with central barrier in many sections.
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by Berk »

linuxrocks wrote: Thu Nov 07, 2019 12:04
Gav wrote: Fri Nov 28, 2014 07:25 And they also allow bikes not on lane three though.... ;-)
In South Australia, bikes were allowed on the South Eastern Freeway until the Crafers exit (the first). Riding up there was damn scarey, especially the Devils Elbow. Coming down was worse, often resulting in smoking brake blocks! With the opening of the Heysen Tunnels, which bypasses the Devils Elbow, bike now have their own lane, which I think eventually finds its way onto the old road. I'm going back at Christmas and if I can borrow a bike, I'll have a look.

Here is a link to the start of the bike track. The octagonal building is the old Toll House, which operated from 1841 to 1847. https://www.google.com.au/maps/@-34.964 ... 312!8i6656
I’ll tell you what though, heading down to Crafers is still damned steep (and twisty). And they have speed cameras too!! :shock:
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by Berk »

When I read about Crafers and Glen Osmond Interchange, I found it hard to believe that such a steep road was built as a motorway, and an improvement at that.

Stranger still, the speed limit for trucks is only 60km/h - to stop them running away and causing accidents (despite the presence of arrester beds).

Now I’ve driven it, I can completely believe it!!
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by Peter Freeman »

crazyknightsfan wrote: Thu Dec 19, 2019 03:48 All rural freeways have 110km/h limits in Aus, as do the D2 parts of the Hume Highway which have at-grade crossings. Some major S2 highways in western NSW and western QLD also have 110km/h limits.
And four major S2 highways, totalling 3000km, in the Northern Territory have a 130km/h limit.
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by roadtester »

Not quite on topic - it's not about an Australian motorway but it is about an Australian road upgrade - the Tanami Road, which is to be sealed, a project that doesn't appear to be universally popular:

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-01-04/ ... d/11793386
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by Peter Freeman »

I've been hoping for years that this route would be sealed, as have virtually all locals and the NT and WA governments. It will cut hundreds of km from the Alice-to-Kimberley journey. The 'adventurers' who want to keep it rugged are a selfish minority. Note that 235M$ is only a small part of the required budget: the job will be staged and take many years to complete.
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by Berk »

Looking at the map, it really is the only direct route between Broome and Alice.

The ABC article mentions that some sorts of freight can’t easily be carried at present, due to road conditions, vibrations and so on.

I wonder whether a concrete pavement could be used. You get that quite a lot on other Aussie motorways. Would make sense from a maintenance point of view.
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by Peter Freeman »

Enceladus wrote: Thu Nov 07, 2019 02:25 Just out of interest, is there a major programme of motorway construction in Australia currently?
This link might interest you. It's not really about plans: it lists the major motorways at present (with significant omissions!). It does get updated and so is not too out-of-date, but the way the updates are inserted make it a bit ragged to read through.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freeways_in_Australia

AU does have some roads discussion sites too - but not quite Sabre ....
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by crazyknightsfan »

Berk wrote: Sat Jan 04, 2020 21:08 Looking at the map, it really is the only direct route between Broome and Alice.

The ABC article mentions that some sorts of freight can’t easily be carried at present, due to road conditions, vibrations and so on.

I wonder whether a concrete pavement could be used. You get that quite a lot on other Aussie motorways. Would make sense from a maintenance point of view.
Given the scale of the project I doubt it will be anything other than a chip seal. There just isn't the money for 800km of concrete pavement.

Most rental car companies won't even let you take their vehicles (even 4WDs) on the Tanami Road due to the damage it does to vehicles.
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by Berk »

Not just there, anywhere. Except in Tas, they seem a bit more used to unsealed roads (although there aren’t that many more than on the mainland).

Working out where to go in Australia, it was crucial to understand which routes used sealed roads, and which ones didn’t.

Given that you’re not covered for “off road” stuff (and that includes unsealed roads), I decided to give them a miss. Maybe another time.
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