Australian Motorways

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Peter Freeman
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by Peter Freeman »

The Heysen Tunnels opened in 2000: your trip must have been long ago …! The drive down is still fun.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heysen_Tunnels

The S.E. Freeway, running 75km eastwards from Adelaide to Murray Bridge, is a quiet, very pleasant, undulating D2M drive. It opened in stages during the 1970's and 1980's. At the freeway's eastern end a dual carriageway extends a further 20km SE to Tailem Bend.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Eastern_Freeway
Last edited by Peter Freeman on Thu Apr 25, 2019 00:28, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by linuxrocks »

A303Chris wrote: Tue Apr 23, 2019 13:49 When did the twisty Mount Barker route get replaced by the new road. Last time I was in Adelaide, the south eastern Freeway started at the top of the hill at Mount Lofty, the old road, a twisty dual carriageway was a fun drive.
I miss the old road, especially the Devil's Elbow. It used to be a great ride on a motorbike. Mind you scratching the pegs on the way down was scarey! It was OK scratching on the way up. In the early 1960s, when everybody got around in old bangers, the RAA used to place drums of water on the road up, so you could top up your radiator. My mother used to drive a 1939 black Vauxhall, with a sideways opening bonnet. She only used to put 5/- of petrol in at a time in case it blew up. She would have me sit looking out the back window to tell her when the water stopped dripping. Then it was into someones garden to fill up my sisters potty to pour into the radiator. It threw a rod through the block and we had to scrap it. The old house still has the rim from the spare hanging on the fence to coil the hose around it, and my folks haven't lived there since 1980. Happy days!
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

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Peter Freeman wrote: Wed Apr 24, 2019 01:48 The Heysen Tunnels opened in 2000: your trip must have been long ago …! The drive down is still fun.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heysen_Tunnels

The S.E. Freeway, running 75km eastwards from Adelaide to Murray Bridge, is a quiet, very pleasant, undulating D2M drive. It opened in stages during the 1960's. At the freeway's eastern end a dual carriageway extends a further 20km SE to Tailem Bend.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Eastern_Freeway
Yes a long time ago. I went in 1990, 93, and 95 to see family. Hoping to go back next year
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by Peter Freeman »

I've now drawn a map in similar style for Australian state New South Wales (NSW) -

AU Motorways NSW.png

SydneyNick commented on my Vic map that NSW's would look sparse by comparison. Well, maybe, but mainly just different. Due to NSW's much larger area, with only a slightly larger population, there are only three rural motorways that are lengthy and radiate from Sydney (M1 Princes Hwy, M1 Pacific Hwy and M31 Hume Hwy); and only two relatively short ones that are distant from Sydney (M23 Federal Hwy and M15 Hunter Expressway). As pointed out before, traffic volumes on most AU inter-city routes are too low to warrant motorways, but many non-motorway D2s exist within country towns, and rural S2 main roads are increasingly high-standard.

The city of Sydney itself, population 5 million and growing, has impressive motorways, though not quite as many as Melbourne. What is impressive though is the number and lengths of tunnels. There are ten existing twin tunnels. NorthConnex tunnel, under construction, is 9km in length. WestConnex tunnel, also under construction, some of it D5, will eventually link up M4, M5, M6, M8 and the Western-Harbour and Northern-Beaches tunnels. It will include a major, complex free-flow interchange that's built totally underground.

As before, my drawing is forward-looking, by showing under-construction components as solid lines. The map shows the locations of stack and (many) single-point interchanges, as well as proposed CFI and DDI intersections - just because I like them! Some non-motorways are added for context. These long-standing routes have only occasional grade-separations, so they're slower but have fairly high capacity.

(multiple edits to apply map revisions)
Last edited by Peter Freeman on Sun Feb 11, 2024 02:30, edited 46 times in total.
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by Berk »

A303Chris wrote: Wed Apr 24, 2019 16:16
Peter Freeman wrote: Wed Apr 24, 2019 01:48 The Heysen Tunnels opened in 2000: your trip must have been long ago …! The drive down is still fun.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heysen_Tunnels

The S.E. Freeway, running 75km eastwards from Adelaide to Murray Bridge, is a quiet, very pleasant, undulating D2M drive. It opened in stages during the 1960's. At the freeway's eastern end a dual carriageway extends a further 20km SE to Tailem Bend.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/South_Eastern_Freeway
Yes a long time ago. I went in 1990, 93, and 95 to see family. Hoping to go back next year
Well, I wonder if we’ll be down under at the same time?? I had been planning on going in February (2020), but brought my trip forward a couple of months; not much price difference, and I can celebrate my birthday and Christmas during the summer for a change. :D

Lots of driving every day, but no more than about 200 miles.
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by A303Chris »

Berk wrote: Sun Apr 28, 2019 01:12 Well, I wonder if we’ll be down under at the same time?? I had been planning on going in February (2020), but brought my trip forward a couple of months; not much price difference, and I can celebrate my birthday and Christmas during the summer for a change. :D

Lots of driving every day, but no more than about 200 miles.
I'm planning to go late February, early March to take in the Melbourne Grand Prix
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by Peter Freeman »

And … here's my map for Queensland.

AU Motorways QLD.png

QLD is a big state, with an area larger than Spain, France and Germany combined. Therefore most long distance routes are not motorways.

Brisbane is a go-ahead sub-tropical city with an expanding motorway network that already includes four tolled tunnels. The 900 km road to Sydney is fully dualled, and it will be motorway standard within a few years. That will mean you could drive 2150km non-stop on motorway from Gympie in QLD to Ararat in Victoria.

My favourite QLD road is the Pacific Motorway connecting the City of Gold Coast to Brisbane. It's wide, innovative but pragmatic, and has a wonderful mix of interchange types.

On this map I show the locations of three DDIs, one SPD (SPUI), one offside clover-stack, one CFI, one 3-level stacked single-point diamond (very rare) and one 3-level diamond (also rare).

(multiple edits are to apply map revisions)
Last edited by Peter Freeman on Wed Aug 09, 2023 07:34, edited 16 times in total.
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by Peter Freeman »

Another one in my series: Western Australia (well, Perth really).

AU Motorways WA.png

Perth, Western Australia's capital city, is its only large one. Being AU's fourth in population terms and growing rapidly, it has an interesting rate of roads development.

Curiously, WA is the only state that has so far failed to implement an alpha-numeric route numbering system - other states have a system that resembles the UK's, with M, A, B and C prefixes. Therefore, although WA roads do follow a state numbering system of their own, they are mainly referred to by their names. The major ones are either 'xxx Freeway' or 'xxx Highway'.

The 'freeways' (Kwinana, Mitchell, and Graham Farmer) are at full motorway standard, and are following the usual progression of widening, smartification, ALR, etc. The limited access 'highways' in the metropolitan area are at various stages of conversion from multi-lane all-purpose road to motorway. Tonkin Hwy and Reid/Roe Hwy are farthest along this conversion path, being almost completed. Intersections are/were signalised crossroads, or, occasionally, roundabouts. All, except for very old builds, are future-proofed.

The standard GSJ is a signalised diamond, but there is a smattering of dumbbell (sometimes tear-dropped), parclo, and grade-separated (2-bridge) roundabouts. Also, two clover-stacks on Tonkin Hwy, and a complex hybrid. A-typically for an Australian city, there is only one underground road: Northbridge Tunnel on the Graham Farmer Freeway.

Since Perth is bounded by a minor escarpment about 25km west of the coast, the major development axis runs north and south of the CBD. The Mitchell-Kwinana route is undoubtedly the most important motorway, reflecting this linearity of the city. It currently stretches for over 100 km N-S, and will continue to be extended at each end. Much of its length carries a commuter railway line in the central reservation. A complex hybrid interchange connects it to the Farmer Freeway and city streets as it closely passes the CBD.

Outside of Perth and its associated urban areas, most WA roads are S2, owing to the state's vast size, low population density, and low traffic volumes - the characteristic common to most of rural Australia.

(multiple edits to apply map updates)
Last edited by Peter Freeman on Sun Nov 19, 2023 07:47, edited 18 times in total.
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by crazyknightsfan »

Interestingly the Kwinana Freeway from South Street to Thomas Road (constructed early 1990s) was initially built as a four-lane dual carriageway with traffic signal intersections. In the early 2000s it was rebuilt as a proper freeway, while simultaneously making room for the Southern Suburbs Railway (now Mandurah Line) to be constructed in the median.

Another major planning project is 'Eastlink' (formerly the 'Orange Route) which is a part freeway/part highway corridor from Midland to Clackline (near Northam) to replace Great Eastern Highway through Mundaring.
https://investment.infrastructure.gov.a ... 11-17WA-NP
https://www.communitynews.com.au/hills- ... t-funding/

Last I heard was that it will be freeway to the point where it splits from Toodyay Road and then highway beyond there.
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by Peter Freeman »

crazyknightsfan wrote: Mon Jun 17, 2019 04:43 … the Kwinana Freeway from South Street to Thomas Road (constructed early 1990s) was initially built as a four-lane dual carriageway with traffic signal intersections. In the early 2000s it was rebuilt as a proper freeway ...
Ah, so it did begin its life in the same way as most Perth freeways.
Another major planning project is 'Eastlink' (formerly the 'Orange Route) which is a part freeway/part highway corridor from Midland to Clackline (near Northam) to replace Great Eastern Highway through Mundaring.
https://investment.infrastructure.gov.a ... 11-17WA-NP
https://www.communitynews.com.au/hills- ... t-funding/
Last I heard was that it will be freeway to the point where it splits from Toodyay Road and then highway beyond there.
Thanks for this too - my map is updated accordingly. It's many years since I was last in Perth so I had to thoroughly update myself in order to draw the map. I must go over there and have a drive around.
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by RoadsMaps »

Thanks for all your work, Peter. And in sharing and creating these maps.

However, I only have one criticism: there are actually no Motorways in Victoria. The provision of the M-route designation was foisted upon the state (unlike WA we were unable to resist outside of the metropolitan area), however no road in VIC is defined as a motorway.
I'm sure you're aware of this, but other readers may need clarification.

Limited Access Roads in Australia:
Motorway:
NSW, QLD, SA
Freeway:
WA, SA and VIC
Expressway, Parkway, Outlet:
NSW, SA, ACT, TAS

All states include Highways to LAR, GSJ standard.
Some NSW Motorways are named using the (former) Freeway classification.
B110 is my local arterial.
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by sydneynick »

Unlike the UK, we do not have any special road rules that automatically apply to motorways. We do have some good quality grade-separated divided roads to which you could apply the generic term "motorway", but they can have different names applied to them.

I don't think that NSW has any roads called Freeway these days: they are all given M numbers.

And a new bit of motorway opened yesterday in Sydney: the M4 east first stage, from Concord to Haberfield in tunnel.
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by Peter Freeman »

RoadsMaps wrote: Sun Jul 14, 2019 04:50 However, I only have one criticism: there are actually no Motorways in Victoria … I'm sure you're aware of this, but other readers may need clarification.
I am indeed aware of it. I use the M word and its other-language equivalents (autobahn, autostrada, autopista, ..) in the generic sense. I find the disparity in usage across Australia annoying and embarrassing, but I do detect a gradual adoption of more uniformity.

In the USA of course the generic term is 'Freeway', and AU borrowed that term. In the USA the 'free' part of the word simply meant free-flowing and free of obstruction, and so it did here for many years. Gradually, however, with the increasing number of toll roads and the reaction against them, Australians misinterpreted/re-interpreted the 'free' part of Freeway to mean 'no-toll'. For example, "we're campaigning for the proposed Tollway to be a Freeway instead". And so, the understanding now, amongst the AU general public, is that Freeway means not-tolled and Tollway means tolled. The M word, little-used by the public so far, is the super-set that covers both.
Last edited by Peter Freeman on Thu Jun 04, 2020 09:48, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

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Peter Freeman wrote: Mon Jul 29, 2019 05:38
RoadsMaps wrote: Sun Jul 14, 2019 04:50 However, I only have one criticism: there are actually no Motorways in Victoria … I'm sure you're aware of this, but other readers may need clarification.
I am indeed aware of it. I use the M word and its other-language equivalents in the generic sense. I find the disparity in usage across Australia annoying and embarrassing, but I do detect a gradual adoption of more uniformity (as with the many state-specific characteristics of non-road AU legislation, rules and usages).

In the USA of course the generic term is 'Freeway', and AU borrowed that term. In the USA the 'free' part of the word simply meant free-flowing and free of obstruction, and so it did here for many years. Gradually, however, with the increasing number of toll roads and the reaction against them, Australians misinterpreted/re-interpreted the 'free' part of Freeway to mean 'no-toll'. For example, "we're campaigning for the proposed Tollway to be a Freeway instead". And so, the understanding now, amongst the AU general public, is that Freeway means not-tolled and Tollway means tolled. The M word, little-used by the public so far, is the super-set that covers both.
Now I thought that in the USA 'Freeway' was used for non-tolled roads, whereas roads with a toll were called 'Turnpike'. But I'm happy to be corrected.
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by Peter Freeman »

Chris Bertram wrote: Mon Jul 29, 2019 07:56 Now I thought that in the USA 'Freeway' was used for non-tolled roads, whereas roads with a toll were called 'Turnpike'. But I'm happy to be corrected.
Chris, I believe my statement regarding USA usage of the word Freeway was originally correct, and there were tolled freeways (though I could be mistaken). However, you got me googling, and it appears that current USA practise is much the same as Australia's: 'Freeway' is avoided for a tolled road. An interesting difference of course is that the USA often uses the archaic English term Turnpike for a tollway.
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by Bryn666 »

Peter Freeman wrote: Mon Jul 29, 2019 12:08
Chris Bertram wrote: Mon Jul 29, 2019 07:56 Now I thought that in the USA 'Freeway' was used for non-tolled roads, whereas roads with a toll were called 'Turnpike'. But I'm happy to be corrected.
Chris, I believe my statement regarding USA usage of the word Freeway was originally correct, and there were tolled freeways (though I could be mistaken). However, you got me googling, and it appears that current USA practise is much the same as Australia's: 'Freeway' is avoided for a tolled road. An interesting difference of course is that the USA often uses the archaic English term Turnpike for a tollway.
Don't forget that the earliest grade separated roads in the USA were actually Parkways... including the then US-66 Arroyo Seco Parkway (later Pasadena Freeway, since renamed back).

The first stage of the Pennsylvania Turnpike was opened in 1940, and as the USA's first long distance toll road it set the naming convention (although not for long). Massachusetts has a Turnpike, as did Maine, but New York has the tolled Thruway. Indiana has the imaginatively named Indiana Toll Road... long distance toll roads were predominantly an east coast thing, but Texas has started building several tollways.
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Re: Motorways in Victoria, Australia

Post by Peter Freeman »

Finally (perhaps) South Australia. Repeating the common theme that some AU states have little need for motorway-specification roads in rural areas, this map is really about Adelaide.

AU Motorways SA.png

Adelaide's a city of only 1.5 million inhabitants and the state total is hardly more. Until the last few years there were virtually no motorways in the city area, and still there are few. The first was the M2 Southern Expressway, built initially as a reversible single carriageway! It's since been duplicated, and with the corresponding Northern Expressway it formed the springboard for the city's major infrastructure project: the M2 North-South Motorway. It's not complete yet.

My favourite SA road is the quite beautiful South-Eastern Freeway. It's a quiet rural run for about 80km, but it hits a crazy-steep six-lane descent, passing through short twin-tunnels, into the SE corner of the city. There it ends at a set of traffic signals! Its continuation is planned, vaguely, but not in my lifetime.

(multiple edits to apply map revisions)
Last edited by Peter Freeman on Mon Aug 01, 2022 03:10, edited 6 times in total.
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by Peter Freeman »

A new 41 km length of road opened recently in Queensland, Australia. Its project name is the Toowoomba Second Range Crossing (TSRC), but it will later be called the Toowoomba Bypass. It extends the M2/A2 Warrego Highway (a high quality motorway/DC that originates in Brisbane) and merges into the A39 Newell Highway, which then runs 1450km southwards into regional Victoria and becomes the M39.

The 'range' is Australia's Great Dividing Range. Toowoomba is a medium-sized regional city, 130km inland (west) from Brisbane and sitting atop the range. The 'first range crossing' is the current road, which passes through Toowoomba after climbing westwards up the escarpment. It's a steep and rather spectacular D2AP. The new bypass is only 6.5% gradient, but also is spectacular, negotiating some challenging topography. I'm already planning to get up there to drive it!

There is a web site, with scheme maps, etc:
https://www.tmr.qld.gov.au/Projects/Nam ... e-Crossing
(edit: link now dead, but lots of info, pictures, videos, etc, available by a web search)

The site has some nice videos. For example, here's a synthesised fly-through:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFeQ3Jrjty8

Here's an actual overflight of the eastern portion, when almost completed but not opened:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3plWgJSkNf0

Here's an overflight of the western section, opened:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8JCGTv2tVnA

The final stretch of the western section is grade-separated S2. It's a good example of current AU best-practise for rural main roads. In the third video you can observe its pragmatically-intermittent shoulders, the wide median (painted white lines 1m apart) with a wire-rope barrier occasionally down the centre making it effectively a D1, and the basic diamond interchanges.

The dated progressive construction videos are informative and entertaining. The excavations and landscaping look very raw, but it will be beautiful when time blends them in.
Last edited by Peter Freeman on Mon Jun 06, 2022 05:25, edited 3 times in total.
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by crazyknightsfan »

It's a fantastic bit of road. I can't work out why a loop ramp wasn't included for the Warrego Highway exit, to allow the westbound trucks to skip the traffic lights. Looks like there is plenty of room inside the very widely spaced diamond ramps.
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Re: Australian Motorways

Post by Enceladus »

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?
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