Flinders Highway, Queensland

Last updated

Flinders Highway

Flinders Highway 1612.svg
Flinders Highway (green on black)
General information
TypeHighway
Length775 km (482 mi)
Route number(s) AUS Alphanumeric Route A6.svg State Highway A6
Former
route number
Australian national route 78.svg National Route 78
Major junctions
West endAustralian national highway A2.svg Barkly Highway (National Highway A2), Cloncurry
 
East endAUS Alphanumeric Route A1.svg Bruce Highway (Queensland Highway A1), Townsville
Location(s)
Major settlements Julia Creek, Richmond, Hughenden, Charters Towers
Highway system
Southbound on the Flinders Highway between Reid River and Mingela Flinders Hwy going south on the way to Charters Towers (5930251068).jpg
Southbound on the Flinders Highway between Reid River and Mingela
Southbound on the Flinders Highway between Calcium and Reid River Flinders Hwy, on the way to Charters Towers (5929694603).jpg
Southbound on the Flinders Highway between Calcium and Reid River

The Flinders Highway is a highway that crosses Queensland east to west, from Townsville on the Pacific coast to Cloncurry. The road continues as the Barkly Highway from Cloncurry to the Northern Territory border at Camooweal and beyond. The Flinders Highway passes a number of small outback towns and typical outback landscape predominates towards the inland. It was known as National Route 78 before Queensland began to convert to the alphanumeric system being adopted in Australia and is now designated as A6. The highway is also known as Overlanders Way. [1] Its entire length is part of the National Land Transport Network (formerly Auslink). [2]

Contents

State-controlled road

Flinders Highway is a state-controlled national road. It is defined in five sections, as follows:

History

Approximate road distances (in kilometres) of towns from Townsville along the highway A6FlindersHighway.png
Approximate road distances (in kilometres) of towns from Townsville along the highway

As at 1957, only the Townsville to Charters Towers section was sealed. The rest of the highway was progressively sealed with the last section completed in November 1976. [6]

In the 1980s, the second stage of the Ross River Dam necessitated a deviation of the Flinders Highway and Mount Isa railway line (which previously ran straight north-south) to be further east. This was completed by 1986 and resulted in the closure of Toonpan and Barringha railway stations on the removed route; they were not re-established on new route. [7] [8] [9] [10]

Northern Australia Roads Program upgrades

The Northern Australia Roads Program announced in 2016 included two projects for the Flinders Highway.

Pavement strengthening

The project for pavement strengthening and rehabilitation between Townsville and Torrens Creek was expected to finish in late 2021 at a total cost of $22.2 million. [11]

Replacement of culverts

The project for replacement of culverts between Charters Towers and Richmond was completed in late 2018 at a total cost of $15.1 million. [12]

Roads of Strategic Importance upgrades

The Roads of Strategic Importance initiative, last updated in March 2022, includes the following projects for the Flinders Highway.

Corridor upgrade

A lead project to upgrade the Queensland section of the Tennant Creek to Townsville corridor, including sections of the Barkly and Flinders Highways, the Kennedy Developmental Road and surrounding state and council roads, at an estimated cost of $250 million, was in the planning stage in 2020. [13]

Overtaking lanes

A project to construct overtaking lanes between Townsville and Charters Towers at a cost of $33.4 million is planned to be completed by mid-2023. [14] This project is targeted for "early works" by the Queensland Government, and has been split into two packages. [15]

Pavement strengthening and widening

A project to strengthen and widen the pavement at Scrubby Creek, between Julia Creek and Cloncurry, at a cost of $32.6 million is due for completion in early 2024. [16] This project is targeted for "early works" by the Queensland Government. [15]

Wide centre line treatment

A project to deliver wide centre lines on a section of road between Townsville and Charters Towers at a cost of $9.7 million was due for completion in early 2022. [17] This project was targeted for "early works" by the Queensland Government, and was split into two packages. [15]

Other upgrades

Construct acceleration lane

A project to construct an acceleration lane at Woodstock, at a cost of $5 million, was completed in December 2020. [18]

Towns

Charters Towers

Charters Towers, 133 km to the south west from Townsville. A former gold rush town with a population of 30 000 in 1890. At that time it was known as "The World" because it seemed to be the centre of everything. Presently it is a centre for cattle grazing, with gold mining continuing to be an important industry. Much of the elegant gold rush architecture of the nineteenth century remains in place and is a tourist attraction.

Pentland

Pentland is located between Charters Towers and Hughenden. Pentland is about 140 kilometres (87 mi) away from the town of Hughenden and 240 kilometres (150 mi) from the North Queensland city of Townsville. Hughenden has about 2000 people and Charters Towers has about 9000. Pentland's population is estimated to be 250 people. [19]

Hughenden

Located 243 km further on, Hughenden, the administrative centre of Flinders shire is in the heart of sheep and cattle country.

Richmond

Richmond, a former gold rush town located 112 km further west. Currently a pastoral centre.

Julia Creek

Julia Creek, 147 km further west, another pastoral settlement

Cloncurry

Cloncurry, former copper-mining town located 139 km west from Julia Creek. The first regular Qantas flights started between here and Charleville in 1922 and Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia service started here in 1928. Nowadays it is an important road and rail junction. Flinders Highway ends here.

Major intersections

LGALocationkmmiDestinationsNotes
Townsville Stuart 00.0AUS Alphanumeric Route A1.svg Bruce Highway (Queensland Highway A1) – north–west – Townsville /
south–east – Ayr /
Southern Port Road – north–east – Port of Townsville
Eastern end of Flinders Highway (National Route A6)
1.91.2Stuart Drive – north – TownsvilleFlinders Highway continues south on Stuart Drive
Burdekin River 10565 Macrossan Bridge (see also Great Northern Railway)
Charters Towers Charters Towers 12276Australian state route 63.svg Gregory Highway (State Route 63) – west – Greenvale Northern concurrency terminus with Gregory Highway /
Flinders Highway continues southwest through Charters Towers
Black Jack 13081AUS Alphanumeric Route A7.svg Gregory Highway (State Route A7) – south – Clermont Southern concurrency terminus with Gregory Highway
Flinders Torrens Creek 284176Australian state route 18.svg Torrens Creek Aramac Road (State Route 18) – south – Aramac
Hughenden 371231Australian state route 19.svg Hughenden Muttaburra Road (State Route 19) – south – Muttaburra
373.0231.8Australian state route 62.svg Kennedy Developmental Road (State Route 62) – west – Winton Southern concurrency terminus with Kennedy Developmental Road
373.1231.8Australian state route 62.svg Kennedy Developmental Road (State Route 62) – north – Mount Garnet Northern concurrency terminus with Kennedy Developmental Road
McKinlay Julia Creek 637396Australian state route 84.svg Julia Creek Kynuna Road (State Route 84) – south – Kynuna
640400Australian state route 84.svg Wills Developmental Road (State Route 84) – north–west – Burketown
Cloncurry Cloncurry 759472Australian national highway A2.svg Landsborough Highway (National Route A2) – south–east – KynunaEastern concurrency terminus with Landsborough Highway
Cloncurry River 775.0481.6 Ernest Henry Bridge
Cloncurry Cloncurry 775.2481.7Australian national route 83.svg Burke Developmental Road (National Route 83) – north – Normanton /
Australian national highway A2.svg Barkly Highway (National Route A2) – west – Mount Isa
Western concurrency terminus with Landsborough Highway.
Western end of Flinders Highway
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Intersecting state-controlled roads

In addition to the Bruce, Landsborough and Barkly Highways, and the Gregory, Kennedy, Wills and Burke Developmental Roads, the following state-controlled roads, from east to west, intersect with the Flinders Highway:

Julia Creek–Kynuna Road

Julia Creek–Kynuna Road

LocationFlinders Highway, Julia Creek to Landsborough Highway, Kynuna
Length112 km (70 mi)

Julia Creek–Kynuna Road is a state-controlled district road (number 5807), rated as a local road of regional significance (LRRS). [3] [5] It runs from the Flinders Highway in Julia Creek to the Landsborough Highway in Kynuna, a distance of 112 kilometres (70 mi). It does not intersect with any other state-controlled roads. [20]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Capricorn Highway</span> Highway in Queensland, Australia

The Capricorn Highway is located in Central Queensland, Australia, and links the city of Rockhampton with western Queensland. The highway is 575 kilometres (357 mi) long, and joins the Landsborough Highway at Barcaldine. Formerly National Route 66, Queensland began to convert to the alphanumeric system much of Australia had adopted in the early-2000s and is now designated as A4. The highway runs parallel with the Tropic of Capricorn, hence its name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dawson Highway</span>

The Dawson Highway is a state highway in Queensland, Australia. It runs for 405 kilometres (252 mi) between Gladstone and Springsure where it terminates. From Gladstone to Rolleston it is signed as State Route 60, and then A7 onwards to Springsure. It continues west for another 247 kilometres (153 mi) as Dawson Developmental Road to Tambo on the Landsborough Highway. North of Springsure, A7 becomes the Gregory Highway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gregory Highway</span> State highway in Queensland, Australia

The Gregory Highway is a state highway in Queensland, Australia that serves the major coal-mining centres of Central Queensland. The highway was named after Augustus Gregory, an early explorer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Landsborough Highway</span> Highway in Queensland, Australia

Landsborough Highway is a highway in western Queensland, Australia, running in the northwest–southeast direction from Morven to Cloncurry. The Landsborough Highway runs through vast tracts of land that was once occupied by William Landsborough, an Australian explorer of the 19th century. It is also the central part of the tourist route known as the Matilda Way after the popular Australian song Waltzing Matilda, which extends from Bourke in central northern New South Wales to Karumba on the Gulf of Carpentaria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Flinders River</span> River in Queensland, Australia

The Flinders River is the longest river in Queensland, Australia, at approximately 1,004 kilometres (624 mi). It was named in honour of the explorer Matthew Flinders. The catchment is sparsely populated and mostly undeveloped. The Flinders rises on the western slopes of the Great Dividing Range in North West Queensland and flows generally north-west through the Gulf Country, across a large, flat clay pan, before entering the Gulf of Carpentaria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Julia Creek, Queensland</span> Town in Queensland, Australia

Julia Creek is an outback town and locality in the Shire of Mckinlay, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, the locality of Julia Creek had a population of 511 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kennedy Highway</span> Highway in Queensland, Australia

The Kennedy Highway is a highway in northern Queensland, Australia. It runs as National Route 1 for approximately 243 km from Smithfield, on the northern outskirts of Cairns, to the Gulf Developmental Road in the vicinity of Forty Mile Scrub and Undara Volcanic national parks. South of this junction, the road continues as the Kennedy Developmental Road to Boulia about 936 kilometres away, via Hughenden. West of the junction, National Route 1 continues as the Gulf Developmental Road to Normanton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richmond, Queensland</span> Town in Queensland, Australia

Richmond is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Richmond, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, the locality of Richmond had a population of 648 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shire of McKinlay</span> Local government area in Queensland, Australia

The Shire of McKinlay is a local government area in outback north-western Queensland, Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pentland, Queensland</span> Town in Queensland, Australia

Pentland is a rural town and locality in the Charters Towers Region, Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census, the locality of Pentland had a population of 306 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Burke Developmental Road</span> Road in Queensland, Australia

The Burke Developmental Road is a Queensland (Australia) developmental road. It links Cloncurry and Normanton in a south–north direction, then turns to the north-east 30 km (19 mi) north of Normanton for 230 km (140 mi) before turning south-east till Dimbulah, where it becomes the Mareeba Dimbulah Road.

Kynuna is an outback town in the Shire of McKinlay and a locality split between the Shire of McKinlay and the Shire of Winton in Queensland, Australia. In the 2016 census the locality of Kynuna had a population of 55 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Northern Railway (Mt Isa line)</span>

The Great Northern Railway is a 1067 mm gauge railway line in Queensland, Australia. The line stretches nearly 1,000 kilometres linking the port city of Townsville, Australia to the mining town of Mount Isa in north-west Queensland. Along with a passenger service called the Inlander, it is a major freight route connecting the Mount Isa Mines to the Port of Townsville. In 2010, the line moved 5.8 million tonnes of cargo, and this is expected to increase significantly in coming years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hughenden-Winton railway line</span> Former railway line in Queensland, Australia

The Hughenden-Winton railway line was a railway line in Queensland, Australia, branching from the Mt Isa line at Hughenden and connecting to the Central West line at Winton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nelia, Queensland</span> Town in Queensland, Australia

Nelia is an outback town in the locality of Julia Creek in the Shire of Mckinlay, Queensland, Australia.

The Matilda Way is an Australian road route from Bourke, New South Wales to Karumba in Queensland. It has been designated by the Queensland Government as a State Strategic Touring Route.

The Overlanders Way is an Australian road route from Townsville in Queensland to Tennant Creek, Northern Territory. It has been designated by the Queensland Government as a State Strategic Touring Route.

Northern Australia Roads Program is a suite of projects designed to deliver upgrades to high priority roads in northern Australia. In 2016 the Australian Government announced 19 projects to be funded under this program, and in 2020 another was added. This program is separate to the Northern Australia Beef Roads Program, also announced in 2016, which contains a further 18 projects.

Richmond–Winton Road is a continuous 145 kilometres (90 mi) road route in the Richmond and Winton local government areas of Queensland, Australia. It is a state-controlled district road rated as a local road of regional significance (LRRS). It is part of the shortest route from the Croydon / Georgetown area to Winton and Longreach. It is also part of the inland freight network linking cattle properties to major freight routes on the Landsborough and Flinders highways.

Roads of Strategic Importance in Queensland is a list of roads in Queensland, Australia, that are the subject of one or more road improvement projects under the Roads of Strategic Importance (ROSI) initiative of the Australian Government. The purposes of this document are to:

References

  1. "Outback Australia - Australian Outback". Outbacknow.com.au. Archived from the original on 20 February 2012. Retrieved 21 July 2013.
  2. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 29 February 2016. Retrieved 10 August 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. 1 2 3 The State Road Network of Queensland (PDF) (Map). Queensland Government ©State of Queensland [CC BY 4.0]. 30 June 2022. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
  4. 1 2 "Northern district map" (PDF). Department of Transport and Main Roads ©State of Queensland [CC BY 4.0]. November 2022. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 "North West district map" (PDF). Department of Transport and Main Roads ©State of Queensland [CC BY 4.0]. March 2022. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  6. "Completion of Flinders Highway". Australian Transport : 16–17. August 1977.
  7. "Ross River Dam". Townsville City Council. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  8. "Railway stations and sidings - Queensland". Queensland Open Data. Queensland Government. 2 October 2020. Archived from the original on 5 October 2020. Retrieved 5 October 2020.
  9. "Mount Elliott (Special)" (Map). Queensland Government. 1942. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  10. "Queensland Globe". State of Queensland . Retrieved 8 February 2024.
  11. "Flinders Highway (Townsville - Torrens Creek) Pavement Strengthening and Rehabilitation (Package 1)". Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications. 12 October 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  12. "Flinders Highway (Charters Towers - Richmond) Culvert upgrades (Package 1)". Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications. 13 September 2021. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  13. "Tennant Creek to Townsville - Queensland". Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications. 11 May 2020. Archived from the original on 28 April 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  14. "Flinders Highway (Townsville - Charters Towers) Overtaking Lanes". Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications. 4 February 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  15. 1 2 3 "ROSI early works package" (PDF). Queensland Government. 29 April 2020. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
  16. "Flinders Highway (Julia Creek - Cloncurry) - Scrubby Creek Pavement Strengthening and Widening". Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications. 16 March 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  17. "Flinders Highway (Townsville - Charters Towers) Wide Centre Line Treatment". Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Communications. 14 December 2021. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  18. "Flinders Highway (Glenn Road) acceleration lane project". Queensland Government. 22 November 2021. Retrieved 14 June 2022.
  19. "Our Region – Pentland". Charters Towers Regional Council. Retrieved 8 December 2015.
  20. Google (5 May 2024). "Julia Creek to Kynuna" (Map). Google Maps . Google. Retrieved 5 May 2024.