Highways in Australia are generally high capacity roads managed by state and territory government agencies, though Australia's federal government contributes funding for important links between capital cities and major regional centres. Prior to European settlement, the earliest needs for trade and travel were met by narrow bush tracks, used by tribes of Indigenous Australians. The formal construction of roads began in 1788, after the founding of the colony of New South Wales, and a network of three major roads across the colony emerged by the 1820s. Similar road networks were established in the other colonies of Australia. Road construction programs in the early 19th century were generally underfunded, as they were dependent on government budgets, loans, and tolls; while there was a huge increase in road usage, due to the Australian gold rushes. Local government authorities, often known as Road Boards, were therefore established to be primarily responsible for funding and undertaking road construction and maintenance. The early 1900s saw both the increasingly widespread use of motorised transportation, and the creation of state road authorities in each state, between 1913 and 1926. These authorities managed each state's road network, with the main arterial roads controlled and maintained by the state, and other roads remaining the responsibility of local governments. The federal government became involved in road funding in the 1920s, distributing funding to the states. The depression of the 1930s slowed the funding and development of the major road network until the onset on World War II. Supply roads leading to the north of the country were considered vital, resulting in the construction of Barkly, Stuart, and Eyre Highways.
A dual carriageway or divided highway is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation. Roads with two or more carriageways which are designed to higher standards with controlled access are generally classed as motorways, freeways, etc., rather than dual carriageways.
The Brooker Highway is a highway in the State of Tasmania, Australia. As one of Hobart's 3 major radials, the highway connects traffic from the Hobart city centre with the northern suburbs and is the major road connection to the cities and towns of Northern Tasmania. With an AADT of 48,000, the highway is one of the busiest in Tasmania. The Brooker Highway has recently been declared part of the National Highway.
Stuart Highway is one of Australia's major highways. It runs from Darwin, in the Northern Territory, via Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, to Port Augusta in South Australia; a distance of 2,720 km (1,690 mi). Its northern and southern extremities are segments of Australia's Highway 1. The principal north-south route through the central interior of mainland Australia, the highway is often referred to simply as "The Track".
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 is declared by VicRoads as 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 article will deal with the entire length of the corridor for sake of completion, as well to avoid confusion between declarations.
The Princes Motorway is a 62-kilometre (39 mi) predominantly dual carriage untolled motorway that links Sydney to Wollongong and further south through the Illawarra region to Albion Park Rail. Part of the Australian Highway 1 network, the motorway is designated with the route number M1.
Reid Highway is a 23-kilometre (14 mi) east-west highway and partial freeway in the northern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, linking North Beach with Middle Swan. As part of State Route 3, it forms half of Perth's outer ring road along with Roe Highway, which it joins onto at its eastern terminus.
Marmion Avenue is a 40-kilometre (25 mi) arterial road in the northern coastal suburbs of Perth, Western Australia, linking Trigg in the south with Yanchep in the north. It forms part of State Route 71 along with West Coast Highway, which it joins onto at its southern terminus.
Westall Road is a major north to south thoroughfare west of Springvale, Victoria, Australia.
Joondalup Drive is a major distributor road in the northern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia. The road travels through the City of Joondalup's central business district and extends for a few kilometres east through neighbouring residential suburbs in the City of Wanneroo. The road was extended in 2005 to the northern suburb of Banksia Grove to provide easy access for residents to Joondalup's city centre, and to provide a complete connecting route to the Brand Highway from the Mitchell Freeway.
Hepburn Avenue is an arterial east-west road in the northern suburbs of Perth, Western Australia. The road links Sorrento in the west with Malaga and Whiteman in the east. It also connects the residential developments that span its length with several local facilities, as well as major road routes into central Perth.
Amy Johnson Avenue is a major arterial road in Darwin's eastern suburbs. The road travels 4 kilometres in a north – south direction, starting from Old McMillans Road in the north passing through the Stuart Highway and ending at Tiger Brennan Drive in the south.
The city of Darwin, Northern Territory is served by a wide variety of transport. While the city's main form of transport is private transport on the road network, transport is also available by bus, ferry and aircraft.
Gnangara Road is an arterial east-west road in Perth, Western Australia. It is located within the northern suburbs of Perth, from Madeley in the west, to Henley Brook in the east. Gnangara Road provides a connection between Great Northern Highway and Wanneroo Road. The construction of the Ocean Reef Road extension in 2011 altered the road network in the Landsdale area in Landsdale. The plans show Gnangara Road as discontinuous between Mirrabooka Avenue and Alexander Drive, with the Mirrabooka Avenue and Ocean Reef Road extensions linking the two sections. Following construction, those linking road sections were named as Gnangara Road, allowing the road to remain continuous.
Berrimah Road is a major arterial road in the outer eastern suburbs of Darwin, Northern Territory Australia. The road provides an important transport corridor to access the port facilities at East Arm as well as the northernmost passenger and freight terminals on the Adelaide-Darwin railway. It has undergone recent upgrades as part of the Tiger Brennan Drive extension works between 2009 and 2012. Berrimah Road is used by approximately 4000 vehicles per day, including a large proportion of heavy trucks and this number is expected to increase significantly with the growth of the port activities There are major junctions controlled by traffic lights at Tiger Brennan Drive and Wishart Road, as well as a public weighbridge used by trucks entering and exiting the industrial precinct at the southern end.
Bagot Road is a major arterial road in Darwin, Northern Territory Australia. The road forms part of the main transport route between the Central Business District, northern suburbs and Darwin International Airport. The origins of the name Bagot Road is believed to be in reference to the Bagot family of South Australia, who had significant land holdings in the early Northern Territory. In 2010, the road was used by an average of 34,487 vehicles per day. Due to the high traffic volumes, a number of major retailers and fast food outlets are situated along Bagot Road. Darwinbus Route 10 and Orbital Link services travel the length of Bagot Road with frequent stops in both directions.
McMillans Road is a major arterial road in the northern and eastern suburbs of Darwin, Northern Territory Australia. The road provides an access route for some of the city's most important infrastructure including Darwin International Airport, Northern Territory Institute of Sport, Marrara Oval and the headquarters and training college of the Northern Territory Police. It is also the main road access to Crocodylus Park, a major tourist attraction boasting a crocodile farm and small zoo. The road is named for the McMillan brothers as it was originally the access to pastoral leases they held in the 1920s and 1930s.
Larapinta Drive is a designated state route in the Northern Territory of Australia.
Ginninderra Drive is a major arterial road in the northern suburbs of Canberra, the capital city of Australia. The road provides an important access corridor to facilities including the Australian Institute of Sport, Canberra Stadium, the University of Canberra and Belconnen Town Centre. It is built to a dual carriageway standard carrying two or three traffic lanes in each direction for most of its length, with a speed limit of 80 km/h (50 mph). A short section from Charnwood to Dunlop is single carriageway with a speed limit of 60 km/h (37 mph). The first section of the road, connecting Lyneham with the new suburb of Evatt opened to traffic in October 1976.
A15 (Berrimah Road to Stuart Highway)
