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This is a list of highways in Australia, listed alphabetically along with its route number and location. Note that some highways service more than one state or territory.

Contents

[edit] Route numbering systems

Australia is a vast and sparsely populated country. Its earliest highways radiate in a spoke-like pattern from capital cities in each State. These highways link major country towns to the capital cities. Intercapital transport was initially mainly by sea and rail.

As the population increased, roads connecting the towns located on different highways were constructed. Victoria, for example, has the largest highway network, with every major town linked directly to every other major town in the state. Increased demand for freight and passenger transport led to construction of intercity highways, although much freight still goes by rail.

[edit] National Route Numbering System

Australia's National Highway
A typical National Route shield
The National Highway Shield

In 1955, the Australian National Route Numbering System was introduced to simplify navigation across Australia. The National Route Numbers are marked by white shields which are present in directional signs, distance signs or trailblazers. The general rule is that odd-numbered highways travel in north-south directions and even-numbered highways in east-west directions, with only a few exceptions. National Route 1 was assigned to a network of highways and roads which together linked all capital cities and coastal towns circumnavigating the mainland.

In the 1970s the National Highway scheme was introduced. It is made up of highways that give the most direct point-to-point route between capitals. These highways are federally funded. They are recognised by their distinct green and gold shields.

The National Route system initially linked the centres of towns and cities and terminated at the junction of other national routes. The growth of bypasses around towns and cities changes the situation somewhat. National Routes often terminate at the metropolitan city limits rather than the individual city centres.

[edit] State Route Numbering System

Important urban and inter-regional routes not covered by the National Highway or National Route systems were marked under the State Route system. They are recognised by blue shield markers. They were practically adopted in all states by the end of the 1980s. In some states, some less important National Routes had been downgraded to State Routes.

In New South Wales, they are also adopted in metropolitan areas of Wollongong and Newcastle using three-digit numbers instead of two-digit found elsewhere. In regional Victoria and South Australia, the blue shield state route numbers were superseded in the late 1990s with the alphanumeric system, which is also used in Tasmania. See below.

[edit] Alphanumeric Route Numbering System

Alphanumeric National Highway Shield.
Alphanumeric State Route Marker.

In the 1990s there was a major change to the route marking systems. Victoria and South Australia had completely overhauled their systems. They discarded the National and State Route Numbering Systems and introduced the alphanumeric marking scheme following the example set by Tasmania in the late 1970s.

The route numbers inherited from the original National Route Numbering System remains with a few exceptions, however they are now prefixed with letters denoting their grade. For example, Western Freeway is M8 until Ballarat and continues beyond as A8 Western Highway.They are not used in the Melbourne metropolitan area where the blue-shield metropolitan route system is retained.

New South Wales is slowly preparing to introduce the alphanumeric system with new road signs being fitted with such numbers and then being "coverplated" with the existing route number. It has not been announced when this system will officially be introduced.

There are no plans to introduce such a system in Western Australia.

[edit] "M" Routes

Primary highways. These are typically dual carriageway motorway standard highways. They connect capital cities to each other or to bigger rural cities and also applicable to major city freeways. Interchanges may either be graded or level. They carry high volumes of traffic and bypass settlements, towns and sometimes cities.

[edit] "A" Routes

Single carriageway interstate or interregional primary highways. Traffic volume less than "M" routes but with ample overtaking lanes, sealed shoulders and markings. They may pass through or bypass town centres.

[edit] "B" Routes

Secondary highways linking together major towns on different "A" routes including certain lesser important former national routes. In addition, they may include major bypassed sections of former "A" or "M" routes and significant tourist routes. They are reasonably good quality sealed roads with shoulders either sealed or not.

[edit] "C" Routes

Roads linking smaller settlements and towns to "A", "B" or "M" routes. May also be applied to short bypassed sections of former "A" routes. Fully sealed surface but of moderate to poor quality and may or may not have shoulders.

[edit] "D" Routes

These are unsealed roads linking very small remote towns. The term is used in this sense only in South Australia so far and is generally applied to unsealed roads and tracks or unsealed extensions of "B" or "C" routes. Roads/tracks are of various quality for an unsealed road. Use of 4 wheel drive vehicles are recommended for some "D" Routes. Another meaning, in New South Wales, "D" routes refer to detour routes. An example of this is the D5 which provides motorists with an alternate route when the M5 tunnel is closed.

Metroad shield

[edit] Metropolitan Route Numbering System

In the 1990s in Sydney and Brisbane, urban route numbering system were streamlined in the new Metroad scheme. They are recognised by distinctive hexagonal shields and superseded the state route, freeway and National Route schemes along their path. Metroads radiate in a spoke pattern from city centres to highways outside metropolitan limits. In addition, Metroads also cover major city ring roads. Metroads are made of urban highways, main roads and urban freeways.

Non-Metroads retain the earlier state route system.

[edit] Australian highways

Below is the listing of National highways (and their destination routes), followed by highways sorted by states and territories and their corresponding routes. This list has over 100 entries. To view these highways alphabetically click here.

[edit] National highways

[edit] Canberra to Sydney

Route # Road name Destinations Distance (km)
Australian National Route 23.svg Federal Highway Canberra to Yarra 73
Australian National Route 31.svg Hume Highway Yarra to Sydney 187
260 kilometres

[edit] Canberra to Melbourne

Route # Road name Destinations Distance (km)
Australian National Route 25.svg Barton Highway Canberra to Yass 52
Australian National Route 31.svg Hume Highway Yass to Albury 294
Australian National Route M31.svg Hume Freeway Wodonga to Melbourne (Thomastown) 290
Australian National Route M80.svg Western Ring Road Melbourne 15
651 kilometres

[edit] Sydney to Melbourne

Route # Road name Destinations Distance (km)
Australian National Route 31.svg Hume Highway Sydney to Albury 539
Australian National Route M31.svg Hume Freeway Wodonga to Melbourne (Thomastown) 290
Australian National Route M80.svg Western Ring Road Melbourne 15
844 kilometres

[edit] Sydney to Adelaide

Route # Road name Destinations Distance (km)
Australian National Route 31.svg Hume Highway Sydney to Tarcutta 392
Australian National Route 20.svg Sturt Highway Tarcutta to Buronga 597
Australian National Route A20.svg Mildura to Gawler 370
Main North Road Gawler to Adelaide 44
1403 kilometres

[edit] Sydney to Brisbane

Route # Road name Destinations Distance (km)
Australian National Route 1.svg Sydney-Newcastle Freeway Sydney to Newcastle 127
Australian National Route 15.svg New England Highway Newcastle to Wallangarra 581
AUHWYA15.png Wallangarra to Warwick 95
Cunningham Highway Warwick to Ipswich 127
QLD-M2.png Ipswich Motorway Ipswich to Brisbane 14
944 kilometres

[edit] Melbourne to Brisbane

Route # Road name Destinations Distance (km)
Australian National Route M80.svg Western Ring Road Melbourne 15
Australian National Route M31.svg Hume Freeway Melbourne (Thomastown) to Seymour 89
Australian National Route M39.svg Goulburn Valley Freeway Seymour to Shepparton (except Nagambie) 45
Australian National Route A39.svg Goulburn Valley Highway Shepparton to Tocumwal (including Nagambie) 110
Australian National Route 39.svg Newell Highway Tocumwal to Goondiwindi 1062
AUHWYA39.png Leichhardt Highway Goondiwindi to North Goondiwindi 21
Gore Highway North Goondiwindi to Toowoomba 202
AUHWYA2.png Warrego Highway Toowoomba to Ipswich 97
QLD-M2.png Ipswich Motorway Ipswich to Brisbane 14
1655 kilometres

[edit] Melbourne to Adelaide

Route # Road name Destinations Distance (km)
Australian National Route M80.svg Western Ring Road Melbourne 15
Australian National Route M8.svg Western Freeway Melbourne (Deer Park) to Ballarat 115
Australian National Route A8.svg Western Highway Ballarat to VIC/SA Border 314
Dukes Highway VIC/SA Border to Tailem Bend 189
Australian National Route A1.svg Princes Highway Tailem Bend to Murray Bridge 25
Australian National Route M1.svg South Eastern Freeway Murray Bridge to Crafers 66
Adelaide-Crafers Highway Crafers to Adelaide 10
719 kilometres

[edit] Adelaide to Darwin

Route # Road name Destinations Distance (km)
Australian National Route A1.svg Main North Road Adelaide to Gepps Cross tba
Australian National Route A16.svg Grand Junction Road Gepps Cross to Regency Park tba
Australian National Route A13.svg South Road Regency Park to Wingfield tba
Salisbury Highway Wingfield to Mawson Lakes tba
Australian National Route A1.svg Port Wakefield Road Mawson Lakes to Snowtown tba
Princes Highway Snowtown to Port Augusta tba
Australian National Route A87.svg Stuart Highway Port Augusta to SA/NT Border tba
Australian National Route 87.svg Stuart Highway SA/NT Border to Daly Waters tba
Australian National Route 1.svg Stuart Highway Daly Waters to Darwin tba
3,035 kilometres

[edit] Perth to Adelaide

Route # Road name Destinations Distance (km)
Australian National Route 94.svg Great Eastern Highway Perth to Redcliffe tba
Great Eastern Highway Bypass Redcliffe to Hazelmere tba
Roe Highway Hazelmere to Midvale tba
Great Eastern Highway Midvale to Coolgardie tba
Coolgardie-Esperance Highway Coolgardie to Norseman tba
Australian National Route 1.svg Eyre Highway Norseman to Eucla tba
Australian National Route A1.svg Eyre Highway Eucla to Port Augusta tba
Princes Highway Port Augusta to Snowtown tba
Port Wakefield Road Snowtown to Gepps Cross tba
Main North Road Gepps Cross to Adelaide tba
2700 kilometres

[edit] Perth to Darwin

Australian National Route 95.svg

Australian National Route 1.svg

[edit] Brisbane to Darwin

QLD-M2.png

AUHWYA2.png

Australian National Route 66.svg

Australian National Route 87.svg

Australian National Route 1.svg

[edit] Brisbane to Cairns

Qld M1.PNG

AUHWYA1.png

[edit] Hobart to Burnie

Australian National Route 1.svg

[edit] State Highways

[edit] Major Arterial Roads


  • Gillies Highway, Queensland
  • Perth-Bunbury Highway (proposed), Western Australia

[edit] Minor Arterial Roads


[edit] Outback Tracks


[edit] Tourist Roads

[edit] State listing

For state listings see:

[edit] See also




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