One of the first plans for a ring road of Geelong dates back to 7 March 1969, when a report was released by the then Geelong Regional Planning Authority. It said that the ring road could be delayed for up to 15 years.[3]
In the mid-1970s the Geelong Regional Planning Authority, Chairman by Colin K. Atkins OAM, sponsored the Geelong Transportation Plan, which canvassed a number of options for major road construction in the area. One was for a north–south freeway along the line of Latrobe Terrace, though Geelong West and Chilwell, and another was for Aberdeen Street to be upgraded into a major road with the acquisition of 99 houses.[3] Any freeway construction through the suburbs of the city was vetoed after residents objections. The final plan advocated the construction of what became the Geelong Ring Road, although it also proposed that Latrobe Terrace become a 4-lane arterial road.[4]
In 1979 a Melbourne firm carried out acoustic testing at Wandana Heights to ascertain the impact of a freeway.[3] The alignment was finalised in 1979 and appeared as a proposed freeway in the Melwaystreet directory for a number of years.
Growing traffic volumes through the centre of Geelong led to Latrobe Terrace being converted into a major arterial road in early 1989, with the construction of a bridge over the Geelong-Melbourne railway line at its northern end, and the James Harrison Bridge over the Barwon River at its southern end.[5]
Road classification
The passing of the Road Management Act 2004[6] granted the responsibility of overall management and development of Victoria's major arterial roads to VicRoads: in 2012, VicRoads declared the road as part of the Princes Freeway West (Freeway #1500), beginning at Corio-Waurn Ponds Road (Princes Highway) at Corio and ending in Waurn Ponds.[2]
Sections
The project was renamed the Geelong Ring Road on 20 February 2007. [7]
Construction on the Geelong Ring Road began in early 2006 with the freeway section to Waurn Ponds scheduled for completion in 2009. A total of $384million from the Victorian and Federal Governments was committed initially to fund the first three sections of the project.
The Geelong Ring Road (freeway type) was to be constructed in three sections as follows:
There was much local debate on the proposed route for Section 3.[11] The final decision was made on 7 July 2006, while construction commenced in September 2007.[12] It was ultimately decided that there would be no toll when the Geelong Ring Road opened to traffic.
Sections 1 and 2 were officially opened on Sunday, 14 December 2008.[13] Two days of torrential rain beforehand threatened to disrupt the opening,[14] however it went ahead as planned after a cessation of the storm.[15] The two sections were opened by Victorian Premier John Brumby,[16] who announced the naming of the feature bridge on stage two of the road as the "Lewis Bandt Bridge", in honour of the Ford Australia engineer who is credited as the inventor of the Utility vehicle, in Geelong.[17] Section 3 was opened in June 2009.[18][19]
Map detailing the planned route of the Geelong Ring Road (green dotted line).
Section 4: split into three sub-sections:
Stage 4A (Connection from Geelong Ring Road to Anglesea Road)
Stage 4B (Connection from Anglesea Road - Princes Highway West)
Stage 4C (Surf Coast Highway connection, later renamed Baanip Boulevard)
In October 2007, during the 2007 Federal election campaign the Labor party promised $107.5million for the fourth stage of the road. It was made up of $45million for stage 4B, on top of their promise made in September for $62.5million towards Stage 4A.[20] In May 2008 stages 4A and 4B were given the go ahead, with State Premier John Brumby announcing $65million in funding for stage 4B, in addition to earlier State Government funding of $63million for stage 4A. Running from the Princes Highway at Waurn Ponds; it will run from Anglesea Road near Hams Road, through the Blue Circle Quarry to the Princes Highway, near Draytons Road. On 17 December 2008 a $62million contract was awarded to Fulton Hogan to design and build section 4A of the ring road to Anglesea Road.[21] Section 4A opened in December 2011,[22] and Section 4B opened in February 2013.[23]
The State and Federal Governments have also each committed $110million to duplicate the Princes Highway to Winchelsea.[24] An extra stage connecting the road to the Surf Coast Highway was also investigated.[25] This stage (Section 4C) opened on 3 June 2015, six months ahead of schedule,[26][27] and later gazetted as Baanip Boulevard, after Willem Baa Nip, a local Wathaurung man well known to the Geelong community during the 1800s.[28]
A shared bicycle and pedestrian pathway has also been built along the freeway from Broderick Road, Corio to Church Street, Hamlyn Heights.[29] Built at a cost of $4million, the trail will not connect into the Geelong bicycle network, due to a short missing link between Church Street and the Fyansford Common.[30]
Future
A future extension of the Ring Road known as Section 5 or the Bellarine Link has been proposed which will extend the Geelong Ring Road from Baanip Boulevard to Portarlington Road. Since 2017, early planning has been undertaken by the Victorian Government to determine a preferred alignment for a future extension, however it is unlikely that this section will be built in the short-term.[31] Community consultation was undertaken in December 2021.[32]As of April2024[update], the link is still being planned and developed.
The design and construction contract for the 10.5km-long (6.5mi)[33] section 1 was awarded to Abigroup in November 2005 for $134.8million.[29] Construction work commenced on 17 February 2006. Section 2 was delivered via two separate design and construction contracts. The contract for 4.5 kilometres (2.8mi) of freeway was awarded to Cut and Fill Pty Ltd for $31.7million, while FRH (now Fulton Hogan) won the $15.5million contract for the Moorabool River bridges. Construction work on section two commenced on 27 September 2006.[29]
The Creamery Road overpass in Bell Post Hill was the first major element of the project to be opened in January 2007 (a number of minor access road deviations had been completed earlier). The Broderick Road overpass was opened in November 2007.[34] The 200m long bridges over the Moorabool River, the largest on the project, had the final span installed on 6 March 2008. The bridges contain 70 beams and have 12 piers.[35]
In 2007 VicRoads said that section one was to be completed by February 2008, but by that time completion had been pushed out to the middle of 2008.[36] By this time earth works were completed on stage two, with 700,000 cubic metres of earth moved, and installation of noise walls had started along with landscaping.
By May 2008 completion of stages one and two of the road has been delayed until November, with VicRoads stating that "wet and cold weather in recent weeks had prevented sealing the road surface". At this time the Victorian Government permitted the filming of a plane crash scene from the Nicolas Cage film Knowing on the incomplete road at Corio.[37]
Local police expressed concerns about a staged opening of the road, with drivers using temporary shortcuts not suited to heavy traffic and large vehicles.[38]
Construction on sections 1 and 2 reached practical completion when the road opened to traffic on 14 December 2008.
Section 3
The $108.3million design and construction contract for section 3 was awarded on 25 July 2007 to Abigroup. Section three works include 7.5 kilometres of freeway, the transportation of 4.7million cubic metres of earth, and twin 110-metre long bridges over the Barwon River.[39] Construction of section 3 commenced on 14 September 2007.[40]
By February 2008 550,000 cubic metres of earth had been moved to the north and south of Barrabool Road, and the foundation works for the arch structure over Wandana Drive were complete.[36] Section three was originally scheduled for completion in the second half of 2009[41] however it was announced in early June 2009 that section three would open 6 months early on 14 June 2009.[18]
Section 4A
The design and construction contract for section 4A was awarded to Fulton Hogan on 16 December 2008 for $61.7million. Construction began in March 2009 and was completed by the end of 2011.[22]
Economic benefits
The freeway saves fuel and travel time for commuters and cargo trucks.
The completion of the Geelong Ring Road was expected to bring large economic benefits to the region. Approximately 582 hectares (1,440 acres) of land west of the road has been identified for use as new industrial land,[42] however resistance from nearby residents in the Lovely Banks area to two service station developments cast some cloud over future development.
Criticism
Some opponents of the construction of the Geelong Ring Road feared that the inclusion of the road in the local Geelong roads ecosystem would have adversely affected the environmental conditions in the Geelong area. One point made was that it would "generate millions of tons of carbon dioxide and carbon monoxide pollution in the Geelong and Corio Bay region".[citation needed]
More likely however is that the overall difference would not be significant, as traffic that would previously have travelled through the centre of Geelong via the main Melbourne Road/Latrobe Terrace/James Harrison Bridge/Settlement Road/High Street/Princes Highway West corridor, would now travel via the Geelong Ring Road, improving the environmental condition for the majority of Geelong residents, by removing that traffic from the most heavily populated areas of the city. There has been no environmental study that shows that the construction of the Geelong Ring Road would adversely affect the environment.[citation needed]
The loss of amenity experienced by residents in the immediate vicinity of the freeway corridor due to the severing of a number of local roads was also a source of criticism, but most of these roads have been reconnected via upgraded existing roads, or the addition of new roads.[citation needed]
The main opposition to this project had nothing to do with environmental issues.[citation needed] In 1991 VicRoads undertook its own study and decided to abandon plans to utilise the Section 3 route in favour of a bypass from Avalon Road across Corio Bay to Point Henry and then along the Barwon River valley to the Surf Coast Highway, Anglesea Road and Princes Highway West.[citation needed]
As a result of VicRoads decision the freeway reservation south of Princes Highway West to the Anglesea Road was abandoned and was developed as residential allotments with the approval of VicRoads and South Barwon Council.
Over the next 11 years many people built houses along the route especially from Wandana Drive to the Princes Highway West. Then in 2001 the Victorian Government initiated a project to investigate options for a Geelong Bypass. It involved a steering committee, technical committee and Community consultation committee. After 18 months the expectations based on information provided to participants was that the VicRoads preferred route would be recommended. To the surprise of almost all[citation needed] Westconnect - the route to the west of Geelong including the abandoned Section 3[citation needed] was recommended. Much later it was found that someone had re-costed the eastern route as a full 2 lanes each way freeway construction - even though such a construction was not warranted[citation needed] - and that re-costing made the eastern route uneconomic.[citation needed]
Immediately opposition was generated by those who had built close to the Ring Road reservation. VicRoads proposes 4 alternate routes with the result that further opposition was generated from people located close to Options 2 and 3.
In May 2005 during negotiations between Planning Panels Victoria and VicRoads over an environmental Effects process, Planning Panels requested VicRoads minimise the Options to be considered. VicRoads obliged by reducing the Options to 1 and 2 [citation needed] , even though Option 3 was the best Option [citation needed]. As a result, during the EES process a huge amount of pressure was put on the Planning Panel[citation needed] in respect of consideration of Option 3 but they only agreed to consider it if neither 1 or 2 satisfied the criteria being considered.[citation needed] In its recommendation, in spite of neither Option 1 or 2 satisfying the criteria [citation needed]. Planning Panels recommended Option 1 plus an urgent need to consider further work to overcome the problems with Option 1 including the fact it ended in the middle of a commercial area with nowhere to go to connect to Anglesea Road et cetera.
As a result, the estimated cost of the route to Anglesea Road and then around to Princes Highway West is $618 million – about $200 million more than Option 3 plus a connection to Anglesea Road would have cost.[citation needed] In addition the fact that the route is 3km (2mi) longer than Option 1, that most freight traffic comes from the west,[citation needed] and the route requires trucks to negotiate slopes down into the Waurn Ponds Valley and then back out again[citation needed] means the additional cost to users is around $10million per annum.[citation needed] Finally around 360 households are located within 160 metres of the Ring Road and subject to noise and diesel engine particulate matter pollution whereas with the Option 3 route only 10 houses would have been within 160 metres.[citation needed]
Geelong is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay and the left bank of Barwon River, about 75 km (47 mi) southwest of Melbourne. With an estimated population of 282,809 in 2023, Geelong is the second largest city in the state of Victoria. It is the administrative centre for the City of Greater Geelong municipality, which is Port Phillip's only regional metropolitan area, and covers all the urban, rural and coastal reserves around the city including the entire Bellarine Peninsula and running from the plains of Lara in the north to the rolling hills of Waurn Ponds to the south, with Corio Bay to the east and the Barrabool Hills to the west.
Princes Highway is a major road in Australia, extending from Sydney via Melbourne to Adelaide through the states of New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia. It has a length of 1,941 kilometres (1,206 mi) or 1,898 kilometres (1,179 mi) via the former alignments of the highway, although these routes are slower and connections to the bypassed sections of the original route are poor in many cases.
Victoria has the highest density of roads of any state in Australia. Unlike Australia's other mainland states, which have vast areas with virtually no residents, Victoria has population centres spread out over most of the state, with only the far north-west and the Victorian Alps without significant settlements. Population centres are linked by high quality highways and freeways. The state capital, Melbourne, has the most extensive freeway network of any city in Australia.
The West Gate Freeway is a major freeway in Melbourne, the busiest urban freeway and the busiest road in Australia, carrying upwards of 200,000 vehicles per day. It links Geelong and Melbourne's western suburbs to central Melbourne and beyond. It is also a link between Melbourne and the west and linking industrial and residential areas west of the Yarra River with the city and port areas. The West Gate Bridge is a part of the freeway.
The Monash Freeway is a major urban freeway in Victoria, Australia, linking Melbourne's CBD to its south-eastern suburbs and beyond to the Gippsland region. It carries up to 180,000 vehicles per day and is one of Australia's busiest freeways. The entire stretch of the Monash Freeway bears the designation M1.
Princes Freeway is a 159-kilometre (99 mi) Australian freeway, divided into two sections, both located in Victoria, Australia. The freeway links Melbourne to Geelong in the west, and to Morwell in the east. It continues beyond these extremities as the Princes Highway towards Adelaide to the west and Sydney to the northeast. The freeway bears the designation M1.
The Mornington Peninsula Freeway is a freeway in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, that provides a link from south-eastern suburban Melbourne to the Mornington Peninsula. Whilst the entire freeway from Dingley Village to Rosebud is declared by VicRoads as the Mornington Peninsula Freeway, the section between EastLink in Carrum Downs and Moorooduc Highway in Moorooduc is locally and commonly known as Peninsula Link. The entire freeway corridor bears the designation M11.
This is a timeline of major events in the history of the city of Geelong, Australia.
Waurn Ponds is a mainly residential southern suburb of Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
North Geelong is a suburb of Geelong in the Australian state of Victoria. The suburb was bypassed by traffic from Melbourne coming from the Princes Freeway by the creation of the Geelong Ring Road, which was complete in 2009. At the 2016 census, North Geelong had a population of 2,966.
The Geelong V/Line rail service is a regional passenger rail service operated by V/Line in Victoria, Australia. It serves 15 stations towards its terminus in Waurn Ponds, a southern suburb of Geelong, via the Regional Rail Link. It is the most used regional rail service in Victoria, carrying 8.15 million people in the 2022-23 financial year.
The Warrnambool line is a long-distance regional rail service in Victoria, Australia. Operated by V/Line, it is the state's fourth longest railway line at 267.3 kilometres (166.1 mi). The line runs from Southern Cross station in central Melbourne to Warrnambool station in the south-west, serving 21 stations via Wyndham Vale, Geelong, Waurn Ponds, and Colac. The line has five return services each weekday and three return services on weekends. Trains on the Warrnambool service run with three- to five-car N-class carriage sets, which are hauled by N class locomotives.
The Moorabool River is a river in Victoria, Australia, which runs for 160 kilometres through several small towns such as Meredith, Anakie, and Staughton Vale. It runs into the Barwon River at Fyansford. It is believed that the name Moorabool derives from an Aboriginal word meaning the cry of a curlew or a ghost.
Westfield Geelong is a shopping centre located in the Geelong CBD in Victoria, Australia which was opened in 1988. It was formerly known as Westfield Bay City before the 2008 redevelopment, and as Bay City Plaza before being acquired by the Westfield Group in 2003. The centre is located on the northern side of Malop Street opposite the Market Square shopping complex, and is bounded by Moorabool Street, Yarra Street, Malop Street and Brougham Street. The centre has completed its major redevelopment, including the expansion over Yarra Street via a flyover.
Christian College is a K–12 private school located over six campuses in Geelong, Victoria, Australia.
The M80 Ring Road is a partially complete urban freeway ring road around Melbourne, Australia. This article will deal with the entire length of the corridor for sake of completion, as well to avoid confusion between declarations.
Old Princes Highway is a collection of roads, described as any part of an earlier route designated as Princes Highway, located in Victoria, Australia. Sections of the road run through Geelong, Werribee, and through the outer fringes of south-eastern Melbourne eventually to Morwell East. In the time since their de-listing as Princes Highway, many former sections have since been renamed, or have devolved to their original names.
In Victoria, Highway 1 is a 958-kilometre (595 mi) long route that follows the coastline of the state, from the New South Wales border near Genoa to the South Australian border near Dartmoor. Highway 1 continues around the rest of Australia, joining all mainland state capitals, and connecting major centres in Tasmania. All roads within the Highway 1 system are allocated a road route numbered 1, M1, A1, or B1, depending on the state route numbering system. In Victoria, the highway is designated as route M1 between Traralgon and Winchelsea, and route A1 elsewhere.
Surfcoast Highway is a semi-rural highway in Victoria, Australia, connecting the city of Geelong with the coastal town of Torquay. The highway runs through the Armstrong Creek Growth Area, which is the subject of extensive residential development; closer to Torquay, tourist attractions the Narana Creations indigenous centre, Surf Coast Plaza retail centre, and the Surfworld museum are located along the highway.
↑ State Government of Victoria. "Road Management Act 2004"(PDF). Government of Victoria. Archived(PDF) from the original on 18 October 2021. Retrieved 19 October 2021.
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(2009–present)
Princes Freeway 
