Hume Highway, inclusive of the sections now known as Hume Freeway and Hume Motorway, is one of Australia's major inter-city
national highways, running for between
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
in the southwest and
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
in the northeast.
Upgrading of the route from Sydney's outskirts to Melbourne's outskirts to
dual carriageway
A dual carriageway ( BE) or divided highway ( AE) is a class of highway with carriageways for traffic travelling in opposite directions separated by a central reservation (BrE) or median (AmE). Roads with two or more carriageways which are ...
was completed on 7 August 2013.
From north to south, the road is called Hume Highway in metropolitan Sydney, Hume Motorway between the
Cutler Interchange and
Berrima, Hume Highway elsewhere in
New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
and Hume Freeway in
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
. It is part of the
Auslink National Network and is a vital link for road freight to transport goods to and from the two cities as well as serving
Albury-Wodonga and
Canberra
Canberra ( )
is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
.
Route
![Hume Fwy (VIC) Distances](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Hume_Fwy_%28VIC%29_Distances.gif)
At its Sydney end, Hume Highway begins at
Parramatta Road
Parramatta Road is the major historical east-west artery of metropolitan Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, connecting the Sydney CBD with Parramatta. It is the easternmost part of the Great Western Highway. Since the 1990s its role has been a ...
, in
Ashfield. This route is numbered as A22. The first
of the highway was known as Liverpool Road until August 1928, when it was renamed as part of Hume Highway, as part of the creation of the NSW highway system. Sections of the highway through Sydney's suburbs continue to be also known by its former names of Liverpool Road, Sydney Road and Copeland Street (through Liverpool).
The main Hume Highway/Motorway effectively commences at the junction of the
M5 South-West Motorway
The M5 Motorway is a motorway located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia that is designated with the M5 route and forms part of the Sydney Orbital Network. The M5 route number comprises two connected parts, separately owned and operated:
...
and the
Westlink M7
The Westlink M7 or M7 Motorway, formerly Western Sydney Orbital, is a tolled urban motorway in Sydney and is a part of the Sydney Orbital Network. Owned by the NorthWestern Roads (NWR) Group, it connects three motorways: M5 South-West Motorwa ...
at . Heading eastbound, the M5 provides access to
Sydney Airport
Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport (colloquially Mascot Airport, Kingsford Smith Airport, or Sydney Airport; ; ) is an international airport in Sydney, Australia, located 8 km (5 mi) south of the Sydney central business district, in the ...
and the CBD; while the M7 provides access to
Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to:
*Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England
*Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England
*Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...
and
Brisbane
Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...
bypassing the Sydney CBD. Both of these routes are
tolled. The section of Hume Motorway between Prestons and
Narellan Road was previously known as South Western Freeway (not to be confused with the M5 South-West Motorway) and was allocated route number F5. While this section later officially became known as Hume Highway, it continued to be referred to as the F5 Freeway until the early 2010s.
[
Other than sections within the urban areas of Sydney and Melbourne, Hume Highway is generally dual-carriageway (with at-grade intersections and restricted entry from adjoining land), with considerable lengths which are of full freeway standard. Most of these sections are bypasses of the larger towns on the route, where the need to deviate the route to construct the bypass made it practical to deny access from adjoining land and thus provide full freeway conditions. In addition to these bypasses the sections between Casula (in southwestern Sydney) and Berrima (built 1973–92), and Broadford to Wallan (1976), which were both constructed as major deviations, are also of full freeway standard. The entire section in Victoria is categorised as a freeway by government roads authority ]VicRoads
VicRoads is a government joint venture in the state of Victoria, Australia. In the state, it is responsible for driver licensing and vehicle registration. It is owned and operated through a joint venture between the Victorian government and a ...
, although a few intersections along the route are not yet grade-separated. The speed limit on the full length of the highway is .
As Hume Freeway approaches Melbourne at the suburb of Craigieburn, north of the Melbourne central business district
The Melbourne central business district (also known colloquially as simply "The City" or "The CBD") is the city centre and main urban area of the city of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, centred on the Hoddle Grid, the oldest part of the city la ...
, the Craigieburn Bypass now diverts Hume Freeway (and the M31 designation) to the east of the former route, to terminate at the Western and Metropolitan Ring Roads. This bypass was opened in two stages, in December 2004 and December 2005.
At its Melbourne end, the original alignment of the Melbourne–Sydney route followed Royal Parade northward from where it begins at its intersection with Elizabeth Street and Flemington Road. Royal Parade becomes Sydney Road at Brunswick Road and then became the Hume Highway itself at Campbellfield. This ceased to be the designated route of Hume Highway in 1992, with the completion of Stage 1 of the Western Ring Road, at which point the designation of the southbound highway was truncated. The former highway south from the Western Ring Road to Elizabeth Street is route is now numbered as Metropolitan Route 55 and is now officially called Sydney Road.
Landscapes
Heading north from Melbourne, the road passes through the hills of the Great Dividing Range
The Great Dividing Range, also known as the East Australian Cordillera or the Eastern Highlands, is a cordillera system in eastern Australia consisting of an expansive collection of mountain ranges, plateaus and rolling hills, that runs rough ...
, some of which is covered with box eucalypt forest but of which much is cleared for farmland, before levelling out near Seymour to cross flat, mostly cleared farming country to Wodonga and the Victoria-New South Wales border. Victoria's landscape differs from that of the typical 'true Australian Outback
The Outback is a remote, vast, sparsely populated area of Australia. The Outback is more remote than the bush. While often envisaged as being arid, the Outback regions extend from the northern to southern Australian coastlines and encompass a n ...
', but a dry summer can leave the ground parched. Mount Buffalo
Mount Buffalo is a mountain plateau of the Australian Alps and is within the Mount Buffalo National Park in Victoria, Australia. It is located approximately northeast of Melbourne. It is noted for its dramatic scenery.
The summit of the highes ...
can be seen in the distance to the east as the highway comes down off the Warby Range near Glenrowan, and a museum commemorating Ned Kelly
Edward Kelly (December 1854 – 11 November 1880) was an Australian bushranger, outlaw, gang leader and convicted police-murderer. One of the last bushrangers, he is known for wearing a suit of bulletproof armour during his final shootout wi ...
is located nearby. At Wangaratta the highway passes close to the Rutherglen and Milawa wine-producing areas.
Continuing north, the Murray River
The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray) (Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta: ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is Australia's longest river at extent. Its tributaries include five of the next six longest r ...
, the south bank of which is the Victoria-New South Wales border, is crossed on the bypass of Albury-Wodonga. From Albury, the highway skirts Lake Hume and continues across undulating country generally north-east towards Holbrook and then Tarcutta. Just north of Tarcutta the highway encounters the first of several ranges which form outliers of the Great Dividing Range, and which are crossed as the highway climbs the slopes to the tablelands west of Yass. From here the highway runs eastward, to Goulburn where it again turns northeast. Most of the New South Wales countryside from Albury to Marulan has been developed for wool
Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool.
As ...
production, with Yass and Goulburn in particular noted for their fine wool.
History
The coast of New South Wales, from the Queensland to the Victorian borders, is separated from the inland by an escarpment
An escarpment is a steep slope or long cliff that forms as a result of faulting or erosion and separates two relatively level areas having different elevations.
The terms ''scarp'' and ''scarp face'' are often used interchangeably with ''escar ...
, forming the eastern edge of the Great Dividing Range
The Great Dividing Range, also known as the East Australian Cordillera or the Eastern Highlands, is a cordillera system in eastern Australia consisting of an expansive collection of mountain ranges, plateaus and rolling hills, that runs rough ...
, with few easy routes up this escarpment. To climb from the coast to the tablelands, Hume Highway uses the Bargo Ramp, a geological feature which provides one of the few easy crossings of the escarpment.
In the first twenty years of European settlement at Sydney (established 1788), exploration southwest of Sydney was slow. This area was heavily wooded at the time, especially the " Bargo brush", which was regarded as almost impenetrable. In 1798 explorers (Wilson, Price, Hacking, and Collins) reached the Moss Vale
Moss Vale is a town in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, Australia, in the Wingecarribee Shire. It is located on the Illawarra Highway, which connects to Wollongong and the Illawarra coast via Macquarie Pass.
Moss Vale has several h ...
and Marulan
Marulan is the traditional lands of the Gundungurra people. It is a small town in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia in the Goulburn Mulwaree Council local government area. It is located south-west of Sydney on the Hume Highw ...
districts, but this was not followed up. Any settlement would have to await the construction of an adequate access track, which would have been beyond the colony's resources at the time, and would have served little purpose as a source of supplies for Sydney, due to the time taken to reach Sydney. In 1804, Charles Throsby
Charles Throsby (1777 – 2 April 1828) was an English surgeon who, after he migrated to New South Wales in 1802, became an explorer, pioneer and parliamentarian. He opened up much new land beyond the Blue Mountains for colonial settlement ...
penetrated through the Bargo brush to the country on the tablelands near Moss Vale and Sutton Forest
Sutton Forest is a small village in the Southern Highlands, New South Wales, Australia in Wingecarribee Shire. It is located 5 km southwest of Moss Vale on the Illawarra Highway. Sutton Forest was originally granted, then owned by Navy Ch ...
. On another expedition in 1818, he reached Lake Bathurst
Lake Bathurst ( Aboriginal: ''Bundong'') is a shallow lake located south-east of Goulburn, New South Wales in Australia. It is also the name of a nearby locality in the Goulburn Mulwaree Council.
Features and location
The surface area of the la ...
and the " Goulburn Plains". Many of the early explorers would most likely have used aboriginal guides, but they do not appear to have given them credit.
After Charles Throsby's 1818 journey towards present day Goulburn, followed by Hamilton Hume and William Hovell's overland journey from Appin (near Campbelltown) to Port Phillip and return in 1824, development of the Southern Tablelands for agriculture was rapid. The present route of Hume Highway is much the same as that used by the pioneers.
The route taken by Hume Highway to climb from the coast to the Southern Tablelands and across the Great Divide is situated between the parallel river gorge systems of the Wollondilly
Wollondilly Shire is a periurban local government area adjacent to the south-western fringe of Sydney, parts of which fall into the Macarthur, Blue Mountains and Central Tablelands regions in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Wollon ...
and Shoalhaven
The City of Shoalhaven is a local government area in the south-eastern coastal region of New South Wales, Australia. The area is about south of Sydney. The Princes Highway passes through the area, and the South Coast railway line traverses ...
rivers. This country consists generally of a gently sloping plateau which is deeply dissected by the Nepean River
Nepean River (Darug: Yandhai), is a major perennial river, located in the south-west and west of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The Nepean River and its associated mouth, the Hawkesbury River, almost encircles the metropolitan region of ...
and its tributaries. The route of the Highway, by using four high-level bridges to cross these gorges, avoids the Razorback Range, and has minimal earthworks
Earthworks may refer to:
Construction
*Earthworks (archaeology), human-made constructions that modify the land contour
* Earthworks (engineering), civil engineering works created by moving or processing quantities of soil
*Earthworks (military), m ...
. The climb from the western side of the Nepean River at Menangle up to Mittagong
Mittagong () is a town located in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, Australia, in Wingecarribee Shire. The town acts as the gateway to the Southern Highlands when coming from Sydney. Mittagong is situated at an elevation of . The town ...
is fairly sustained, a fact that is hard to appreciate at high speed on the modern freeway. The highway climbs non-stop over a distance of from the Pheasants Nest
Pheasants Nest is a small village in the Macarthur (New South Wales), Macarthur Region of New South Wales, Australia, in Wollondilly Shire. It has a north bound and south bound Roadhouse (facility), roadhouse on the Hume Highway. At the , Pheasan ...
bridge over the Nepean River to Yerrinbool
Yerrinbool is a Northern Village of the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, Australia, in the Wingecarribee Shire, and is accessible from the Hume Highway (via Bargo or Alpine) and is about a drive from nearby Mittagong. It is to Hill ...
, before dropping slightly before the final climb to reach the tablelands at Aylmerton
Aylmerton is a village in the county of Norfolk, England. It is in the area of North Norfolk and lies south of the North Sea, south-west of Cromer and east of Holt. The parish is bordered by the parishes of Beeston Regis and Runton to t ...
, a climb of over in .
Early road construction
Governor Lachlan Macquarie
Major-general (United Kingdom), Major General Lachlan Macquarie, Companion of the Order of the Bath, CB (; gd, Lachann MacGuaire; 31 January 1762 – 1 July 1824) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator from Scotland. Macquarie se ...
ordered the construction of a road, which became known as the Great South Road (the basis of the northern end of Hume Highway) in 1819 from Picton to the Goulburn Plains and he travelled to Goulburn in 1820, but it is unlikely that even a primitive road was finished at that time.
The Great South Road was rebuilt and completely re-routed between Yanderra
Yanderra is a small village situated on the border of the Southern Highlands and Macarthur Region of New South Wales, Australia.
Geography
Yanderra is part of Wollondilly located between Bargo and Southern Highlands' Yerrinbool, and is locate ...
and Goulburn by Surveyor-General Thomas Mitchell in 1833. The ''Main Roads Management Act'' of June 1858 declared the Great South Road, from near Sydney through Goulburn and Gundagai
Gundagai is a town in New South Wales, Australia. Although a small town, Gundagai is a popular topic for writers and has become a representative icon of a typical Australian country town. Located along the Murrumbidgee River and Muniong, Hon ...
to Albury, as one of the three main roads in the colony. However, its southern reaches were described as only a 'scarcely formed bullock track' as late as 1858. The road was improved in the mid-1860s with some sections near Gundagai "metalled
A road surface (British English), or pavement (American English), is the durable surface material laid down on an area intended to sustain vehicular or foot traffic, such as a road or walkway. In the past, gravel road surfaces, hoggin, cobble ...
" and all creeks bridged between Adelong Creek (approximately 10 kilometres south of Gundagai and now known as the village of Tumblong) and Albury.
Mitchell's route in New South Wales, except for the current-day bypasses at Mittagong, Berrima and Marulan
Marulan is the traditional lands of the Gundungurra people. It is a small town in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia in the Goulburn Mulwaree Council local government area. It is located south-west of Sydney on the Hume Highw ...
(dual carriageways were completed in 1986), is still largely followed by today's highway. Mitchell intended to straighten the route north of Yanderra, but was not granted funding, although his proposed route through Pheasants Nest
Pheasants Nest is a small village in the Macarthur (New South Wales), Macarthur Region of New South Wales, Australia, in Wollondilly Shire. It has a north bound and south bound Roadhouse (facility), roadhouse on the Hume Highway. At the , Pheasan ...
has similarities to the freeway route opened in 1980. Mitchell's work on the Great South Road is best preserved at Towrang
Towrang is a village in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia, in Goulburn Mulwaree Council. It is approximately north of Goulburn on the Hume Highway south from Sydney. At the , Towrang had a population of 171.
History
The ...
Creek (10 kilometres north of Goulburn), where his stone arch culvert still stands, although it was superseded in 1965 by a concrete box culvert which in turn was superseded by the current route of the highway when it was duplicated in 1972.
By contrast, in Victoria there was an early and major change to Mitchell's route. Mitchell's original route between Albury and Melbourne went through Mitchellstown
Mitchellstown is a locality in north east Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The locality is in the Shire of Strathbogie local government area and on the Goulburn River, north east of the state capital, Melbourne.
Named after Major Th ...
on the Goulburn River
The Goulburn River, a major inland perennial river of the Goulburn Broken catchment, part of the Murray-Darling basin, is located in the alpine, Northern Country/North Central, and Southern Riverina regions of the Australian state of Victor ...
and took a long detour to the west of Mount Macedon
Mount Macedon ( Aboriginal Woiwurrung language: ''Geboor'' or ''Geburrh'') is a dormant volcano that is part of the Macedon Ranges of the Great Dividing Range, located in the Central Highlands region of Victoria, Australia. The mountain has ...
.
In March 1837 Charles Bonney blazed a new trail from Mitchellstown
Mitchellstown is a locality in north east Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The locality is in the Shire of Strathbogie local government area and on the Goulburn River, north east of the state capital, Melbourne.
Named after Major Th ...
through Kilmore to Melbourne, a route that took a day and a half off the previous journey. The bulk of Bonney's track formed the Sydney Road for the next 139 years. and was especially surveyed in 1840.
Road classification
In 1914 both the Victorian and NSW sections of the highway were declared main roads by their respective state road authorities.
Within Victoria, the passing of the ''Highways and Vehicles Act of 1924'' through the Parliament of Victoria
The Parliament of Victoria is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of Victoria that follows a Westminster-derived parliamentary system. It consists of the King, represented by the Governor of Victoria, the Legislative Assembly and ...
provided for the declaration of State Highways, roads two-thirds financed by the State government through the Country Roads Board
The Country Roads Board was a government authority responsible for the construction and maintenance of main roads in the state of Victoria, Australia between 1913 and 1983.
History
The Country Roads Board (CRB) was formed to take over responsi ...
(later VicRoads
VicRoads is a government joint venture in the state of Victoria, Australia. In the state, it is responsible for driver licensing and vehicle registration. It is owned and operated through a joint venture between the Victorian government and a ...
). North-Eastern Highway was declared a State Highway on 1 July 1925, cobbled from a collection of roads from Melbourne through Seymour, Benalla, Wangaratta and Wodonga to the Murray River (for a total of 161 miles); before this declaration, the road between Melbourne and the river was referred to as (Main) Sydney Road or Melbourne-Sydney Road.
Within New South Wales, the passing of the ''Main Roads Act of 1924'' through the Parliament of New South Wales
The Parliament of New South Wales is a bicameral legislature in the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW), consisting of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly (lower house) and the New South Wales Legislative Council (upper house). Eac ...
provided for the declaration of Main Roads, roads partially funded by the State government through the Main Roads Board (later the Department of Main Roads, and eventually Transport for NSW
Transport for NSW, sometimes abbreviated to TfNSW, and pronounced as Transport for New South Wales, is an agency of the New South Wales Government established on 1 November 2011, and is the leading transport and roads agency in New South Wales, ...
). Main Road No. 2 was declared along Great South Road on 8 August 1928, heading southwest from the intersection with Great Western Highway
Great Western Highway (also known as Broadway from to , Parramatta Road from Chippendale to , and Church Street through Parramatta) is a state highway in New South Wales, Australia. From east to west, the highway links Sydney with Bathurst, ...
at Ashfield, through Bankstown, Liverpool, Crossroads, Narellan, Picton, Mittagong, Goulburn, Yass, and Gundagai to Albury. With the passing of the ''Main Roads (Amendment) Act of 1929'' to provide for additional declarations of State Highways and Trunk Roads, this was amended to State Highway 2 on 8 April 1929.
The Great South Road through New South Wales, and North-Eastern Highway through Victoria, were renamed Hume Highway in 1928, after Hamilton Hume
Hamilton Hume (19 June 1797 – 19 April 1873) was an early explorer of the present-day Australian states of New South Wales and Victoria. In 1824, along with William Hovell, Hume participated in an expedition that first took an overland rout ...
, the first European (with William Hovell
William Hilton Hovell (26 April 1786 – 9 November 1875) was an English explorer of Australia. With Hamilton Hume, he made an 1824 overland expedition from Sydney to Port Phillip (near the site of present-day Melbourne), and later explored the ...
) to traverse an overland route between Sydney and the Port Phillip District
The Port Phillip District was an administrative division of the Colony of New South Wales from 9 September 1836 until 1 July 1851, when it was separated from New South Wales and became the Colony of Victoria.
In September 1836, NSW Colonial Sec ...
, in what later became the Colony of Victoria
In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...
. The highway was fully sealed by 1940.
In New Souh Wales, the passing of the ''Roads Act of 1993'' through the Parliament of New South Wales
The Parliament of New South Wales is a bicameral legislature in the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW), consisting of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly (lower house) and the New South Wales Legislative Council (upper house). Eac ...
updated road classifications and the way they could be declared within New South Wales. Under this act, Hume Highway today retains its declaration as Highway 2, from the intersection with Parramatta Road in Ashfield in Sydney, to the state border with Victoria.
In Victoria, the passing of the ''Road Management Act 2004'' through the Parliament of Victoria
The Parliament of Victoria is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of Victoria that follows a Westminster-derived parliamentary system. It consists of the King, represented by the Governor of Victoria, the Legislative Assembly and ...
granted the responsibility of overall management and development of Victoria's major arterial roads to VicRoads
VicRoads is a government joint venture in the state of Victoria, Australia. In the state, it is responsible for driver licensing and vehicle registration. It is owned and operated through a joint venture between the Victorian government and a ...
: VicRoads re-declared the road in 2013 as Hume Freeway (Freeway #1550), beginning at the state border with New South Wales to the intersection with Western and Metropolitan Ring Roads at Thomastown.
The route was allocated National Route 31 across its entire length in 1954. The Whitlam Government introduced the federal ''National Roads Act 1974'', where roads declared as a National Highway were still the responsibility of the states for road construction and maintenance, but were fully compensated by the Federal government for money spent on approved projects. As an important interstate link between the capitals of New South Wales and Victoria, Hume Highway was declared a National Highway in 1974, and was consequently re-allocated National Highway 31. At the Sydney end, as the South-Western Freeway was extended during the 1990s, National Highway 31 was replaced with Metroad 5 from Prestons to Liverpool in the early 1990s, then by Metroad 7 through Liverpool, and State Route 31 from Liverpool to its terminus at Ashfield. At the Melbourne end, route M31 was diverted onto the Craigieburn bypass in 2005; the former alignment (now known as Sydney Road) was replaced with State Route 55. With both states' conversion to the newer alphanumeric system between the late 1990s and the early 2010s, its route number was updated to route M31 for the highway within Victoria in 1997, and eventually within New South Wales in 2013 (with the route between Berrima and Prestons also renamed Hume Motorway), with route A28 between Prestons and Liverpool, and route A22 from Liverpool to its terminus at Ashfield.
Upgrades
New South Wales
Between February 2009 and March 2012, both carriageways were widened between Brooks Road and Narellan Road. This work was undertaken in 3 stages. The first stage, widening to 4 lanes each way between Brooks Road and St Andrews Road St Andrews
St Andrews ( la, S. Andrea(s); sco, Saunt Aundraes; gd, Cill Rìmhinn) is a town on the east coast of Fife in Scotland, southeast of Dundee and northeast of Edinburgh. St Andrews had a recorded population of 16,800 , making it Fife's fou ...
was completed in 2010. The second stage, widening to 4 lanes each way between St Andrews Road and Raby Road commenced in 2009 and was completed in mid-2011. The final stage, widening to 3 lanes each way between Raby Road and Narellan Road, commenced in September 2010 and was completed in March 2012. Construction of a pedestrian bridge over the highway to link Claymore and Woodbine was also completed. This section of the highway, opened as part of the two stages opened in October 1973 and December 1974, was originally designed for widening of the carriageways to three lanes.
Work commenced in 2010 on a bypass of Holbrook. The bypass was opened to traffic on 7 August 2013 after being postponed due to wet weather. The opening of the bypass resulted in dual carriageway (much to freeway standard) over the full length of the highway for the first time.
Victoria
In 2008, VicRoads
VicRoads is a government joint venture in the state of Victoria, Australia. In the state, it is responsible for driver licensing and vehicle registration. It is owned and operated through a joint venture between the Victorian government and a ...
undertook a planning study for the upgrading of Hume Freeway by removal of direct access from adjoining properties and grade-separation of the intersections between Kalkallo
Kalkallo is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Hume local government area. Kalkallo recorded a population of 5,548 at the 2021 census.
Located on the Hume Fr ...
and Beveridge. These intersections have the highest accident rate of the Hume Freeway in Victoria. The study, completed in March 2009, ensured council planning schemes were amended so as to reserve space for the upgrade, but no timetable had been set for the project.
In addition a 4-level interchange between Hume Freeway and the proposed Outer Metropolitan Ring Road
The Outer Metropolitan Ring Road is a proposed freeway in Melbourne, Australia connecting the Hume Freeway at Kalkallo north of Melbourne, to the Princes Freeway south-west of Werribee. The concept was announced as part of the Victorian Transp ...
is slated to start construction in the 2030s.
Timeline of duplication and bypass works
Duplication works on the highway began in the 1960s and concluded in 2013. The entire route between Sydney and Melbourne is now a dual carriageway, limited access highway
A limited-access road, known by various terms worldwide, including limited-access highway, dual-carriageway, expressway, limited access freeway, and partial controlled access highway, is a highway or arterial road for high-speed traffic which ...
.
*1962 – Chiltern to Barnawartha
Barnawartha is a small town located on the Hume Highway in regional north-east Victoria, Australia, approximately from Melbourne on the banks of Indigo Creek which runs into the Murray River to the north. Barnawartha commercial centre is located ...
opened January, 1962. This is referred to as the 'Hume By-pass Road'. Although initially opened as a single carriageway, two lane bypass, it was the first rural bypass of Victorian towns - Chiltern and Barnawartha - on Hume Highway and was designed to allow for the future construction of a second carriageway.[Country Roads Board Victoria. ''Forty-Ninth Annual Report for the Year Ended 30th June, 1962'', Melbourne, Victoria: Government Printer, 1962. p. 7, p. 22]
*1962 – Craigieburn 'Hume By-pass Road', a dual-carriageway bypass over the Sydney to Melbourne railway and Craigieburn Road, opened January 1962 at a cost of A£
The pound (Sign: £, £A for distinction) was the currency of Australia from 1910 until 14 February 1966, when it was replaced by the Australian dollar. As with other £sd currencies, it was subdivided into 20 shillings (denoted by the symbol s ...
388,000, superseded by Craigieburn bypass in 2005.
*1965/66 – Broadford to Tallarook
Tallarook is a town the Shire of Mitchell local government area in central Victoria, Australia. The town is in on the Hume Highway, north of the state capital, Melbourne. At the , Tallarook had a population of 789.
Tallarook Post Office opene ...
, duplication of 4 miles completed during the financial year.
*1966 – 1.6 km of dual carriageway opened over Bendooley Hill between Mittagong and Berrima, superseded by Berrima bypass in 1989.
*1966/67 – Craigieburn to Kalkallo
Kalkallo is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Hume local government area. Kalkallo recorded a population of 5,548 at the 2021 census.
Located on the Hume Fr ...
, 4.4 miles of dual carriageways completed during the financial year.[Country Roads Board Victoria. ''Fifty-Fourth Annual Report: for the year ended 30th June, 1967'', Burwood, Victoria: Brown, Prior, Anderson, 1968. p. 34]
*1966/67 – Tallarook, 1.4 miles completed south of Tallarook and 1.3 miles completed north of Tallarook during the financial year.
*1967/68 – Kalkallo to Beveridge, 4.1 miles of dual carriageways completed during the financial year.
*1969/70 – Beveridge, Completion of 11 miles of dual carriageway during the financial year, including a deviation at Beveridge and continuation south to connect with existing dual carriageways north of Craigieburn.
*1970/71 – Tallarook bypass, 4.5 mile bypass of Tallarook opened during the financial year.
*1973 – Camden bypass stage 1, Macarthur Bridge across the Nepean River floodplain, opened.
*1973 – South Western Expressway first section (9.8 km) (later subsumed into Hume Highway), opened from Hume Highway in Cross Roads to Campbelltown Road in Raby, on 26 October.
*1974 – Camden bypass stage 2, new dual carriageway route from Narellan Road in Macarthur to Macarthur Bridge, opened.
*1974 – South Western Expressway second section (5.8 km) (also later subsumed into Hume Highway), opened from Campbelltown Road in Raby to Narellan Road in Macarthur, on 16 December.
*1976 – Kilmmore bypass, new dual carriageway route from Wallan
Wallan , traditionally known as Wallan Wallan (large circular place of water), is a town in Victoria, north of Melbourne's Central Business District. The town sits at the southern end of the large and diverse Shire of Mitchell which extends f ...
to Broadford, opened 3 May 1976, by Premier of Victoria
The premier of Victoria is the head of government in the Australian state of Victoria. The premier is appointed by the governor of Victoria, and is the leader of the political party able to secure a majority in the Victorian Legislative Assembly ...
, the Hon R J Hamer, ED, MP. At that time it was the longest section of freeway ever opened at one time in Victoria (34 km) and was the 'single biggest construction project carried out by the CRB since its inception in 1913'.
*1977 – new route of Hume Highway, built to freeway standard, opened from Yanderra to Aylmerton (13.5 km) on 24 May.
*1979 – Violet Town
Violet Town is a town in northeastern Victoria, Australia. The town is in the Shire of Strathbogie local government area, northeast of the state capital, Melbourne on the Hume Highway. At the , Violet Town and district (Honeysuckle Ward) had ...
to Baddaginnie, 10 km of dual carriageways opened early 1979, at a cost of $5.1mil.[Country Roads Board Victoria. ''66th Annual Report. 1978-1979'', Burwood, Victoria: Brown, Prior, Anderson, 1979. p. 19]
*1979 – Avenel to Tubbs Hill (near Longwood), 14.5 km duplication opened 19 December 1979, by Minister for Transport, the Hon Robert Maclellan MLA, at a cost of $6.5mil.
*1980 – Violet Town bypass, 12 km from Wibrahams Road to the existing freeway at One Mile Creek, opened 21 March 1980, by Minister for Transport, the Hon Robert Maclellan MLA, at a cost of $11mil.
*1980 – 35 km deviation of Hume Highway bypassing the Razorback Range opened on 15 December from Narellan Road in Macarthur to Yanderra, connecting sections opened December 1974 and May 1977.
*1981 – Avenel bypass, 16 km north-east from Goulburn Valley Highway
Goulburn Valley Highway is a highway located in Victoria, Australia. The section north of the Hume Freeway is part of the Melbourne to Brisbane National Highway (together with Hume Freeway) and is the main link between these two cities as well a ...
interchange, opened 1 December 1981, by Minister for Transport, the Hon Robert Maclellan MLA, at a cost of $25mil.
*1982 – Seymour bypass, 9 km section, opened 14 December 1982, by Minister for Transport, the Hon. Steve Crabb MP, at a cost of $26mil. At this stage, although largely opened to traffic, a one kilometre section of south bound carriageway south of Seymour was still under construction.
*1984 – Longwood section, 10 km from Oxenburys Road to Creighton Road, opened by Assistant Minister of Transport, the Hon. Jack Simpson MP, on 18 May 1984, at a cost of $10mil. The opening marked the halfway point for the duplication of the highway within Victoria, with the total length of dual carriageways at that point measuring 151 km.
*1985 – Barnawartha to Wodonga
Wodonga
(Pallanganmiddang language, Waywurru: ''Wordonga'') is a city on the Victoria (Australia), Victorian side of the border with New South Wales, north-east of Melbourne, Australia. It is located wholly within the boundaries of the City of ...
duplication, from Hanson Road to Parkers Road. An initial 4 km of the 12.6 km duplicate carriageway was completed in 1985.[Road Construction Authority Victoria. ''Annual Report 1986-87'', Kew, Victoria: Road Construction Authority, Victoria, 1987. p. 63]
*1986 – Marulan bypass, 7.3 km section opened 27 November 1986.
History Begins With a Road (RMS)
*1987 – Benalla
Benalla
is a small city located on the Broken River gateway to the High Country north-eastern region of Victoria, Australia, about north east of the state capital Melbourne. At the the population was 10,822.
It is the administrative cent ...
bypass, 36.5 km section, opened March 1987, at a cost of $70mil. The bypass was at this time the longest stretch of highway duplication opened at once in Victoria, and extended from south of Baddaginnie to Chivers Road, south of Glenrowan.
*1987/88 – Barnawartha to Wodonga, from Hanson Road to Parkers Road. The remaining 8.6 km of the 12.6 km duplicate carriageway was expected to be open to traffic in 'the second half of 1987'.
*1987/88 – Chiltern to Barnawartha. 21 km duplication from Gilmours Road to Hanson Road was expected to be 'opened to traffic in stages from July 1987 until late 1989', at a cost of $31mil.
*1988/89 – Glenrowan bypass, 12.5 km section, completed during the financial year, at a cost of $31.5mil.
*1989 – Berrima bypass, 15.5 km-long section, completed 22 March 1989, at a cost of $80ilm.
*1990 – Springhurst to Chiltern, 5.2 km duplication, opened to traffic in March 1990, at a cost of $8.5mil.[VicRoads. ''VicRoads Annual Report, 1989–1990'', Kew, Victoria: VicRoads, 1990, p. 57]
*1990 – Euroa
Euroa is a town in the Shire of Strathbogie in the north-east of Victoria, Australia. At the 2016 census, Euroa's population was 3,275.
The name Euroa comes from an Aboriginal word in the old local dialect meaning 'joyful'.
History
Major T ...
to Balmattum, 8 km duplication, opened to traffic in June 1990, at a cost of $16mil.
*1990 – Barnawartha bypass, 3.3 km section, completed in June 1990, at a cost of $11mil.
*1991 – 3.3 km duplication north of Springhurst completed in November 1991.[VicRoads. ''VicRoads Annual Report, 1991–1992'', Kew, Victoria: VicRoads, 1992, p. 40]
*1991 – 10 km duplication from Coppabella Road to Reedy Creek completed 17 December 1991.
*1992 – Euroa bypass, completed 3 April 1992, at a cost of $43mil ($2mil under budget).
*1992 – Mittagong bypass, 8.2 km section, completed 17 August 1992, at a cost of $83mil (originally part of the 1970s/1980s F5 project).[RTA Annual Report 1992-1993, p. 6]
*1992 – Goulburn bypass, 13 km section, completed 5 December 1992, at a cost of $84mil.
*1993 – Cullerin Range deviation, 34 km section, completed 5 April 1993, at a cost of $132mil.
*1994 – Springhurst bypass, 5 km section, completed March 1994, at a cost of $7.7mil.[VicRoads. ''VicRoads Annual Report 1993-94'', Kew, Victoria: VicRoads, 1994, p. 17]
*1994 – Wangaratta
Wangaratta ( ) is a city in the northeast of Victoria, Australia, from Melbourne along the Hume Highway. The city had an estimated urban population of 19,318 at June 2018. Wangaratta has recorded a population growth rate of almost 1% annually ...
bypass, 20 km section, completed April 1994, at a cost of $80mil (eight months ahead of schedule and $30m under budget); this was the final section of Hume Highway within Victoria to be duplicated.
*1994 – Yass bypass, 18 km section, completed 25 July 1994, at a total cost of $106mil.[RTA Annual Report 1994-1995, p. 74]
*1995 – Cullerin to Yass duplication, first 11 km section completed 14 September 1994, second 6 km section completed 3 May 1995, at a total cost of $59.1mil.
*1995 – Jugiong bypass, 13 km section, completed 11 October 1995, at a total cost of $85.5mil.[RTA Annual Report 1995-1996, p. 79]
*1996 – Tarcutta Range deviation, 9.4 km section upgrade south of Tumblong completed 3 May 1996, at a cost of $52.6mil.
*2004 – Craigieburn bypass first section, between the Metropolitan Ring Road
The M80 Ring Road (also known as simply the Ring Road or by the name of its constituent parts: Western Ring Road and Metropolitan Ring Road) is a currently incomplete urban freeway ring road around Melbourne, Australia. This article will dea ...
and Cooper Street, completed December 2004.
*2005 – Craigieburn bypass second section, between Cooper Street and Craigieburn, completed December 2005, completing the 17 km bypass, at a total cost of $305mil.
*2007 – Albury-Wodonga bypass, 14.6 km section, completed 6 March 2007; the NSW
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
section comprised from Ettamogah to the Murray River
The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray) (Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta: ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is Australia's longest river at extent. Its tributaries include five of the next six longest r ...
through the city of Albury. The Australian Government
The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Like other Westminster-style systems of government, the Australian Government i ...
fully funded the A$374 million NSW section of the project. The A$150m Victorian section was largely funded by the federal government, with the A$5.8m Bandiana Link funded by the State Government of Victoria.
*2009 – Southern Hume Highway duplication, Work began in October 2007 and the 65 km section (2 km shorter than the previous highway route) was progressively opened to traffic from mid 2009 and completed in December 2009. Completion of this section left only 21 km of the Hume Highway as single carriageway, through the towns of Tarcutta, Holbrook and Woomargama.[Roads and Traffic Authority NSW. ''Annual report 2009-10'', Sydney, New South Wales: RTA, 2010. p. 25]
*2009 – Coolac
Coolac is a village in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia in Gundagai Council. At the , Coolac had a population of 216.
History
The place name ''Coolac'' is derived from the local Aboriginal name for a plant which was abundan ...
bypass, 12 km section, completed August 2009, funded by the Australian Government at a cost of $171mil.
*2009 – Sheahan Bridge duplication, Gundagai: traffic was switched to the new bridge in May 2009 to enable essential maintenance on existing bridge, both bridges available to traffic as dual carriageways in December 2009, funded by the Australian Government at a cost of $70.6mil.
*2011 – Woomargama
Woomargama () is a locality in southwestern New South Wales, Australia. The locality is in the South West Slopes region, in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range. It is in the Greater Hume Shire local government area, south west of the state ...
bypass, 9 km section, completed 7 November 2011, funded by the Australian Government at a cost of $265mil.[New South Wales. Roads and Maritime Services. ''Annual report 2011-12'', Sydney, New South Wales: NSW Government, 2012. p. 18]
*2011 – Tarcutta
Tarcutta is a town in south-western New South Wales, Australia. The town is south-west of Sydney, east of the Hume Highway, It was proclaimed as a village on 28 October 1890. As of 2016, the town had a population of 446.
It serves a local f ...
bypass, 7 km section, completed 15 November 2011, funded by the Australian Government at a cost of $290mil.
*2013 – Holbrook Holbrook may refer to:
Places
England
*Holbrook, Derbyshire, a village
* Holbrook, Somerset, a hamlet in Charlton Musgrove
* Holbrook, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, a former mining village in Mosborough ward, now known as Halfway
*Holbrook, Suffolk, ...
bypass. In June 2013, the NSW department of Roads and Maritime celebrated the imminent completion of the duplication of the Hume Highway with a community day at the Holbrook Bypass.
Fixed speed camera locations
In April 2007, 'point-to-point' fixed speed-camera sites were installed, in the median strip along the Craigieburn Bypass section and northward to Broadford, in Victoria, at roughly 15–20 km intervals. These measure both instantaneous (flash photography) speed and its speciality in the point-to-point versions (between two or more sites and then the average speed is measured to the fixed speed limit, comparing how long it takes a vehicle to reach one point from another). There are five sites, with two cameras (radar version) at each, totalling ten altogether.
In Sydney: next to Ashfield Primary School, near Culdees Road Burwood, Willee St Enfield, Stacey St Bankstown, Brennan St Yagoona, and Knight St Lansvale.
Exit numbering trial
Between Prestons and Campbelltown, an exit numbering system was trialled from May 2016.
Former route allocations
Hume Highway has many former route allocations including former National Route 31. Where and when the former route numbers were implemented are stated below.
''Ashfield – Chullora:''
* National Route 31
* Metroad 5
* State Route 31
* A22
''Chullora – Warwick Farm:''
* National Route 31
* State Route 31
* A22
''Warwick Farm – Casula:''
* National Route 31
* National Highway 31
* Metroad 7
*unallocated:
* A28
''Casula – Prestons:''
* National Route 31
* National Highway 31
* Metroad 5
* Metroad 7
*unallocated:
* A28
''Prestons – Campbelltown:''
* National Route 31
* National Highway 31
* Metroad 5
* M31
''Campbelltown – NSW/VIC border:''
* National Route 31
* National Highway 31
* M31
''NSW/VIC border – Campbellfield:''
* National Route 31
* National Highway 31
* National Highway M31
* M31
Exits and major interchanges
Hume Highway exits and major intersections are spread across in the Australian states of New South Wales and Victoria. The highway's national route is divided into four sections comprising, from north to south, urban stretches of the highway in Sydney, a motorway
A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms i ...
from the outskirts of Sydney to the Southern Highlands, a grade-separated
In civil engineering (more specifically highway engineering), grade separation is a method of aligning a junction of two or more surface transport axes at different heights (grades) so that they will not disrupt the traffic flow on other tran ...
highway in regional New South Wales and across the state border, and a freeway
A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway and expressway. Other similar terms ...
throughout regional Victoria and into the outer suburbs of northern Melbourne.
In Sydney, Hume Highway stretches southwest from in the inner west
The Inner West of Sydney is an area directly west of the Sydney central business district, New South Wales, Australia. The suburbs that make up the Inner West are predominantly located along the southern shore of Port Jackson (Parramatta River) ...
to via and . From Sydney's southwestern outskirts; Hume Motorway stretches south by southwest, from Prestons to outside bypassing and . From outside Berrima, Hume Highway stretches southwest by west, bypassing , , and before crossing the Murray River and entering Victoria. From this point Hume Freeway continues southwest by south, bypassing , and terminating at .
From northeast to southwest, termini, major exits and interchanges occur with the Great Western Highway
Great Western Highway (also known as Broadway from to , Parramatta Road from Chippendale to , and Church Street through Parramatta) is a state highway in New South Wales, Australia. From east to west, the highway links Sydney with Bathurst, ...
/ Parramatta Road
Parramatta Road is the major historical east-west artery of metropolitan Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, connecting the Sydney CBD with Parramatta. It is the easternmost part of the Great Western Highway. Since the 1990s its role has been a ...
(A22), A3 (A3), A6 (A6), Henry Lawson Drive
Henry Lawson Drive is an urban two-lane road located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The road's northwestern terminus is at the Hume Highway and Woodville Road at the "Meccano Set" in , with its southeastern terminus at Forest Road and ...
, Cumberland Highway
The Cumberland Highway is a long urban highway located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The highway links the Pacific Highway (A1/B83) and Pacific Motorway ( M1) at Pearces Corner, Wahroonga in the northeast with the Hume Highway (A22/ ...
(A28), M5 Motorway
The M5 is a motorway in England linking the Midlands with the South West England, South West. It runs from junction 8 of the M6 motorway, M6 at West Bromwich near Birmingham to Exeter in Devon. Heading south-west, the M5 runs east of West Brom ...
(M5), Westlink M7
The Westlink M7 or M7 Motorway, formerly Western Sydney Orbital, is a tolled urban motorway in Sydney and is a part of the Sydney Orbital Network. Owned by the NorthWestern Roads (NWR) Group, it connects three motorways: M5 South-West Motorwa ...
(M7), Camden Valley Way
The Camden Valley Way is a arterial road between Sydney and the historic town of Camden.
The road follows the Old Hume Highway alignment between the localities of and Camden. The northeastern terminus is from , while its southwestern termin ...
(A28), A9 (A9), Remembrance Drive, Old Hume Highway
The Old Hume Highway, an urban and rural road, may be described as any part of an earlier route of the Hume Highway, which traverses Victoria and New South Wales between the cities of Sydney and Melbourne in Australia. In some places, the hi ...
(B73), Illawarra Highway
Illawarra Highway is a short state highway in New South Wales, Australia. It connects Wollongong to the Southern Highlands and links Princes Highway and Hume Highway. It is named after the geographical area it crosses, the Illawarra region.
...
(A48), Federal Highway Federal Highways and Federal Routes can be found in:
*Australia: Federal Highway
*Brazil: Brazilian Federal Highway and Brazilian Highway System
*Germany: ''Bundesstraßen''
*Malaysia: Federal Highway and Malaysian Federal Roads System
*Mexic ...
(M23), , Barton Highway
Barton Highway is a highway in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory. It connects Canberra to Hume Highway at Yass, and it is part of the route from Melbourne to Canberra. It is named in honour of Sir Edmund Barton, the first Pri ...
(A25), Lachlan Valley Way
Lachlan Valley Way is a New South Wales country road running from Booligal to north of Yass.
Route
Lachlan Valley Way commences at the intersection with Cobb Highway in Booligal and heads in a north-easterly direction for about to Hillston. ...
(B81), Burley Griffin Way
Burley Griffin Way is a New South Wales state route, is located in south eastern Australia. Named after the American architect Walter Burley Griffin, designer of the cities of Canberra and Griffith, the road links these two cities via Yass a ...
(B94), Snowy Mountains Highway
Snowy Mountains Highway is a state highway located in New South Wales, Australia. Its two sections connect the New South Wales South Coast to the Monaro region, and the Monaro to the South West Slopes via the Snowy Mountains. The higher alti ...
(B72), Sturt Highway
Sturt Highway is an Australian national highway in New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia. It is an important road link for the transport of passengers and freight between Sydney and Adelaide and the regions situated adjacent to the r ...
(A20), Olympic Highway
Olympic Highway is a rural road in the central western and south-eastern Riverina regions of New South Wales, Australia. The highway services rural communities and links Hume Highway with Mid-Western Highway and provides part of an alterna ...
(A41), Riverina Highway
Riverina Highway is a -long state highway located in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. The road was constructed over several decades with final asphalt concrete sealing completed during the 1960s.
Route
The eastern terminus of ...
(B58), Murray Valley Highway
Murray Valley Highway is a state highway located in Victoria and New South Wales, Australia. The popular tourist route mostly follows the southern bank of the Murray River and effectively acts as the northernmost highway in Victoria. For all b ...
(B400), Great Alpine Road
}
The Great Alpine Road (B500) is a country tourist road in Victoria, Australia, running from Wangaratta in the north to Bairnsdale in the east, and passing through the Victorian Alps. The road was given its current name because it was consid ...
(B500), Midland Highway (A300/B300), Goulburn Valley Freeway
Goulburn Valley Highway is a highway located in Victoria, Australia. The section north of the Hume Freeway is part of the Melbourne to Brisbane National Highway (together with Hume Freeway) and is the main link between these two cities as well ...
(M39), Goulburn Valley Highway
Goulburn Valley Highway is a highway located in Victoria, Australia. The section north of the Hume Freeway is part of the Melbourne to Brisbane National Highway (together with Hume Freeway) and is the main link between these two cities as well a ...
(B340), Northern Highway (B75), Sydney Road (SR55), and Western and Metropolitan Ring Roads (M80).
Major river crossings, from northeast to southwest, are the Nepean
Nepean may refer to:
Places Australia
*Nepean Bay, a bay in South Australia,
**Nepean Bay Conservation Park, a protected area in South Australia,
**Nepean Bay, South Australia, a locality
*Nepean Highway, Victoria
*Nepean Island (Norfolk Island) ...
(three times), Wingecarribee
Wingecarribee Shire is the local government area of the Southern Highlands in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The Wingecarribee Shire is around southwest of the Sydney central business district and is part of regional Capital Cou ...
, Paddys, Murrumbidgee, Murray
Murray may refer to:
Businesses
* Murray (bicycle company), an American manufacturer of low-cost bicycles
* Murrays, an Australian bus company
* Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trust
* D. & W. Murray Limited, an Australian who ...
, Ovens
upA double oven
A ceramic oven
An oven is a tool which is used to expose materials to a hot environment. Ovens contain a hollow chamber and provide a means of heating the chamber in a controlled way. In use since antiquity, they have been us ...
, King
King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king.
*In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...
and Goulburn
Goulburn ( ) is a regional city in the Southern Tablelands of the Australian state of New South Wales, approximately south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Canberra. It was proclaimed as Australia's first inland city through letters pate ...
rivers. The Hume also crosses the Prospect, Jugiong
Jugiong is a locality and town on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River near its confluence with Jugiong Creek. in the Hilltops Council Local Government area, New South Wales, Australia. It is situated just off the Hume Highway, by road, about 30 ...
, and Tarcutta
Tarcutta is a town in south-western New South Wales, Australia. The town is south-west of Sydney, east of the Hume Highway, It was proclaimed as a village on 28 October 1890. As of 2016, the town had a population of 446.
It serves a local f ...
creeks.
Towns
In New South Wales all towns on the highway have been bypassed. From Sydney, southwards to the Victorian border, the bypassed towns include Campbelltown, Camden, Picton, Mittagong
Mittagong () is a town located in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, Australia, in Wingecarribee Shire. The town acts as the gateway to the Southern Highlands when coming from Sydney. Mittagong is situated at an elevation of . The town ...
, Berrima, Marulan
Marulan is the traditional lands of the Gundungurra people. It is a small town in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia in the Goulburn Mulwaree Council local government area. It is located south-west of Sydney on the Hume Highw ...
, Goulburn
Goulburn ( ) is a regional city in the Southern Tablelands of the Australian state of New South Wales, approximately south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Canberra. It was proclaimed as Australia's first inland city through letters pate ...
, Gunning, Yass, Bowning
Bowning is a small town in the Southern Tablelands, west of Yass on the Hume Highway in Yass Valley Shire. Bowning is an aboriginal word meaning 'big hill'. At the , Bowning and the surrounding area had a population of 573.
Nearby Bowning ...
, Bookham, Jugiong
Jugiong is a locality and town on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River near its confluence with Jugiong Creek. in the Hilltops Council Local Government area, New South Wales, Australia. It is situated just off the Hume Highway, by road, about 30 ...
, Coolac
Coolac is a village in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia in Gundagai Council. At the , Coolac had a population of 216.
History
The place name ''Coolac'' is derived from the local Aboriginal name for a plant which was abundan ...
, Gundagai
Gundagai is a town in New South Wales, Australia. Although a small town, Gundagai is a popular topic for writers and has become a representative icon of a typical Australian country town. Located along the Murrumbidgee River and Muniong, Hon ...
, Tarcutta
Tarcutta is a town in south-western New South Wales, Australia. The town is south-west of Sydney, east of the Hume Highway, It was proclaimed as a village on 28 October 1890. As of 2016, the town had a population of 446.
It serves a local f ...
, Holbrook Holbrook may refer to:
Places
England
*Holbrook, Derbyshire, a village
* Holbrook, Somerset, a hamlet in Charlton Musgrove
* Holbrook, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, a former mining village in Mosborough ward, now known as Halfway
*Holbrook, Suffolk, ...
, Woomargama
Woomargama () is a locality in southwestern New South Wales, Australia. The locality is in the South West Slopes region, in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range. It is in the Greater Hume Shire local government area, south west of the state ...
and Albury
Albury () is a major regional city in New South Wales, Australia. It is located on the Hume Highway and the northern side of the Murray River. Albury is the seat of local government for the council area which also bears the city's name – the ...
.
In Victoria all towns have been bypassed. They are, in order from the NSW border, Wodonga
Wodonga
(Pallanganmiddang language, Waywurru: ''Wordonga'') is a city on the Victoria (Australia), Victorian side of the border with New South Wales, north-east of Melbourne, Australia. It is located wholly within the boundaries of the City of ...
, Chiltern, Wangaratta
Wangaratta ( ) is a city in the northeast of Victoria, Australia, from Melbourne along the Hume Highway. The city had an estimated urban population of 19,318 at June 2018. Wangaratta has recorded a population growth rate of almost 1% annually ...
, Benalla
Benalla
is a small city located on the Broken River gateway to the High Country north-eastern region of Victoria, Australia, about north east of the state capital Melbourne. At the the population was 10,822.
It is the administrative cent ...
, Euroa
Euroa is a town in the Shire of Strathbogie in the north-east of Victoria, Australia. At the 2016 census, Euroa's population was 3,275.
The name Euroa comes from an Aboriginal word in the old local dialect meaning 'joyful'.
History
Major T ...
, Violet Town
Violet Town is a town in northeastern Victoria, Australia. The town is in the Shire of Strathbogie local government area, northeast of the state capital, Melbourne on the Hume Highway. At the , Violet Town and district (Honeysuckle Ward) had ...
, Seymour, Broadford and Craigieburn.
Camden
Camden dates from 1840 and lies south west of Sydney on the Nepean River. It retains a rural character and has many historic buildings. There is an aviation museum at nearby Narellan
Narellan is a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales. Narellan is located 60 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Camden Council and is part of the Macarthur region.
Narellan is known for it ...
. Urban sprawl has made Camden part of the Sydney metropolitan area.
Before the mid-1980s, Hume Highway ran west from the Cross Roads at Prestons, 4 km south of Liverpool to Edmondson Park, where it followed the route of what is now Cowpasture Road. It then ran southwest to Camden. This section of Hume Highway became known as the Camden Valley Way
The Camden Valley Way is a arterial road between Sydney and the historic town of Camden.
The road follows the Old Hume Highway alignment between the localities of and Camden. The northeastern terminus is from , while its southwestern termin ...
after it was bypassed by the completion of the South Western Freeway.
Hume Highway has twice bypassed Camden. The first bypass (Camden Bypass) was opened in 1973, via the Macarthur Bridge, and ran from Narellan to Benkennie (South Camden). The Camden Bypass was in turn bypassed in December 1980 when a section of what was then called the South Western Freeway (route F5) from Campbelltown to Yerrinbool opened. From the north, the freeway then ran from the Cross Roads to Campbelltown Road at St Andrews (opened August 1973) and St Andrews-Camden Road (opened December 1974) joining the southern section from Yerrinbool to Aylmerton (opened May 1977). This became the official route of Hume Highway and National Highway 31 in the mid-1980s.
The former highway from Camden south to Aylmerton is now called Remembrance Drive. It climbs southwards from Camden, goes through the Razorback Ridge to Picton, and then climbs to Tahmoor and Bargo. It reaches the Southern Tablelands and rejoins the present Hume Highway at Aylmerton, 6 km north of Mittagong.
An alternative route to the highway runs from Aylmerton through Mittagong and Bowral to join Illawarra Highway at Moss Vale and then follows Illawarra Highway through Sutton Forest to rejoin Hume Highway at Hoddles Crossroads (named after Surveyor Robert Hoddle who also laid out the Melbourne CBD).
Mittagong
Mittagong
Mittagong () is a town located in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, Australia, in Wingecarribee Shire. The town acts as the gateway to the Southern Highlands when coming from Sydney. Mittagong is situated at an elevation of . The town ...
lies south-west of Sydney, just off Hume Highway at the edge of the Southern Tablelands. Mittagong is also a part of the Southern Highlands region. It is notable for being the location of Australia's first ironworks. Mittagong's streets are lined with various species of deciduous trees and it has a busy town centre.
Until August 1992 when the Mittagong bypass was opened, the town was dominated by trucks and in winter it was also busy with skiers' traffic on the way to the Australian Alps. Today, Hume Highway bypasses Mittagong and all the towns of the Southern Tablelands. In the late 1990s, engineers detected subsidence under part of the bypass where it runs along a steep slope near the Nattai River. This was caused by features of the local geology, and mining activity at the adjacent Mount Alexandra coalmine from the 1950s to the 1970s. The problem was remedied by closing one carriageway at a time and building a pair of 'land bridges' across the unstable section of the slope.
Moss Vale
Moss Vale
Moss Vale is a town in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales, Australia, in the Wingecarribee Shire. It is located on the Illawarra Highway, which connects to Wollongong and the Illawarra coast via Macquarie Pass.
Moss Vale has several h ...
has several beautiful old and attractive buildings and Leighton Gardens, in the centre of the main street, is a pleasant park. It is best during spring when its flowers are in blossom or in autumn when the leaves of its exotic deciduous trees are changing colour. Sutton Forest
Sutton Forest is a small village in the Southern Highlands, New South Wales, Australia in Wingecarribee Shire. It is located 5 km southwest of Moss Vale on the Illawarra Highway. Sutton Forest was originally granted, then owned by Navy Ch ...
is surrounded by farms, vineyards and is home to elegant country homes and estates. It has a church, an inn, a couple of restaurants and one or two specialty shops.
Berrima
Berrima has flourished since it was bypassed in March 1989, with tourists finding it an easy day trip from either Sydney or Canberra
Canberra ( )
is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
to enjoy the town square and the Georgian architecture of this historic town. Berrima is the last Southern Highlands town that the Hume Highway passes.
Marulan
The Marulan
Marulan is the traditional lands of the Gundungurra people. It is a small town in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia in the Goulburn Mulwaree Council local government area. It is located south-west of Sydney on the Hume Highw ...
bypass was opened in 1986. The southern part of Governor Lachlan Macquarie
Major-general (United Kingdom), Major General Lachlan Macquarie, Companion of the Order of the Bath, CB (; gd, Lachann MacGuaire; 31 January 1762 – 1 July 1824) was a British Army officer and colonial administrator from Scotland. Macquarie se ...
's road of 1819 ran from Sutton Forest
Sutton Forest is a small village in the Southern Highlands, New South Wales, Australia in Wingecarribee Shire. It is located 5 km southwest of Moss Vale on the Illawarra Highway. Sutton Forest was originally granted, then owned by Navy Ch ...
roughly along existing minor roads through what is now Penrose State Forest to Canyonleigh, Brayton, Carrick and Towrang, where it joined the current route to Goulburn. Branching from this route (now part of the Illawarra Highway
Illawarra Highway is a short state highway in New South Wales, Australia. It connects Wollongong to the Southern Highlands and links Princes Highway and Hume Highway. It is named after the geographical area it crosses, the Illawarra region.
...
) just west of Sutton Forest, a road, now known as Old Argyle Road, developed in the 1820s. It ran to Bungonia, via Wingello, Tallong
Tallong is in the traditional lands of the Gundungurra people. It is a village within the Southern Tablelands region of New South Wales, Australia, in Goulburn-Mulwaree Council. The village is located just outside the southern extremity of the ...
, and the southern outskirts of Marulan. Marulan lies on the 150th meridian east
The meridian 150° east of Greenwich is a line of longitude that extends from the North Pole across the Arctic Ocean, Asia, the Pacific Ocean, Australasia, the Southern Ocean, and Antarctica to the South Pole.
The 150th meridian east forms a g ...
.
When Thomas Mitchell rerouted the Great South Road in the 1830s, he decided to bring these two roads together to meet at old Marulan, with roads proceeding west to Goulburn and south to Bungonia. When the railway reached Marulan in 1868, the town migrated 3 km north to the railway station. Nevertheless, the old cemetery remains at the Bungonia Road intersection. A quarry is about to be developed near the intersection, so an interchange has been built. It is at this point that the highway climbs the Marulan Ramp, which is part of the divide between the Shoalhaven and Wollondilly River systems.
Towrang Stockade
Towrang
Towrang is a village in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia, in Goulburn Mulwaree Council. It is approximately north of Goulburn on the Hume Highway south from Sydney. At the , Towrang had a population of 171.
History
The ...
Creek was the site of a major stockade for chain-bound convicts and others involved in the construction of the Great South Road. The stockade was located on the western side of the highway and was used from around 1836 to 1842. The stockade became the principal penal establishment in the southern district and was noted for its harsh discipline. There were usually at least 250 convicts stationed there. They slept on bare boards with a blanket apiece, 10 men to a box or cell. One of the two official floggers was later found murdered. The stockade used to be accessible by a stile, but this has been taken down to discourage use of the once daunting intersection of the Highway with Towrang
Towrang is a village in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia, in Goulburn Mulwaree Council. It is approximately north of Goulburn on the Hume Highway south from Sydney. At the , Towrang had a population of 171.
History
The ...
Road. There are the remains of the powder magazine next to the Wollondilly River
The Wollondilly River, an Australian perennial river that is part of the HawkesburyNepean catchment, is located in the Southern Tablelands and Southern Highlands regions of New South Wales. The river meanders from its western slopes near Croo ...
, three graves on the north bank of Towrang Creek, and the remains of a weir on Towrang Creek built for the stockade. Aboriginal stone tools have also been found on the banks of Towrang Creek, indicating that this was a route well-travelled long before Hamilton Hume
Hamilton Hume (19 June 1797 – 19 April 1873) was an early explorer of the present-day Australian states of New South Wales and Victoria. In 1824, along with William Hovell, Hume participated in an expedition that first took an overland rout ...
came this way in 1824.
There is also a rest area on the eastern side of the highway, where a well-preserved bridge dating from 1839 (possibly designed by David Lennox
David Lennox (1788 – 12 November 1873) was a Scottish-Australian bridge builder and master stonemason born in Ayr, Scotland.
Personal details
Trained as a stonemason, Lennox worked on Telford's Menai Suspension Bridge at Anglesey in Wales ...
) and a 1960s concrete box culvert can be viewed.
Goulburn
After the cities of Liverpool and Campbelltown, Goulburn
Goulburn ( ) is a regional city in the Southern Tablelands of the Australian state of New South Wales, approximately south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Canberra. It was proclaimed as Australia's first inland city through letters pate ...
is the first major rural city along Hume Highway from Sydney. It is the centre of a rich agricultural area specialising in fine wool production. From this area comes some of the world's finest wool
Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool.
As ...
. Therefore, the city has a monument called The Big Merino near the service station. Goulburn was bypassed on 5 December 1992 and the main street (Auburn Street) is quieter, but still busy during Saturday morning shopping. Picturesque Belmore Park is located midway along Auburn Street. A number of architecturally and historically significant buildings are located near Belmore Park, including the courthouse, the post office and the railway station. Also in central Goulburn are two cathedrals, both of architectural note. A number of old houses and hotels are located near the railway station on Sloane Street.
Gunning
Gunning's 19th century main street was built very wide, for the time of horse and bullock-drawn wagons. This served the town well when the main highway between Sydney and Melbourne carried cars and trucks through the town. This ceased when the bypass was completed on 5 April 1993. The town is now much quieter, and it has been able to resume a more rural pace of life. It has developed something of an industry in providing bed and breakfast accommodation. The recently built Gunning Wind Farm
The Gunning Wind Farm project is a wind farm development in the Cullerin Range, north-east of Gunning, in New South Wales. Wind turbines in the farm are visible from the Hume Highway.
The Gunning Wind Farm comprises an electrical substation ...
is located beside the highway, with its wind turbines providing a distinctive landmark.
The former route of the highway which passed over the Cullerin Ranges is still in use between Bredalbane and Gunning, now known as Cullerin Road.
Yass
Yass has an historic main street, with well-preserved 19th century verandah-post pubs (mostly converted to other uses). It is popular with tourists, some from Canberra
Canberra ( )
is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
and others taking a break from the highway. Hamilton Hume's farm ''Cooma Cottage'' is located east of Yass, close to the intersection of the former routes of the Hume and Barton Highways. He lived there until his death in 1873. The Yass Bypass opened on 25 July 1994.
Bookham
Bookham is situated west of Yass. The highway once passed through the village, but now bypasses it. This bypass was completed in two stages, the south stage opened on 18 February 1998 and the north stage opened on 11 July 2001. As a result of the bypass the Bookham Rest Area was established, which is a popular stop for travellers using facilities and picnicking. It is also used as an overnight camping spot.
For many years Bookham became a quiet hamlet of two historic churches, a cricket ground, a successful worm farm and two thriving old and new machinery yards. In 2009 a cafe was open called Barney's of Bookham (now Barney's Cafe, Bookham). Barney's offers freshly prepared food in a relaxed pet friendly setting. Its recent success has led to the opening of new accommodation in the Old Bookham Church, formerly St Columba's Catholic Church. The church, now deconsecrated, combines comfort and style and can house up to six to eight guests. Both the cafe and church can claim to be amongst the closest such businesses to the highway.
Coolac
The section at Coolac
Coolac is a village in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia in Gundagai Council. At the , Coolac had a population of 216.
History
The place name ''Coolac'' is derived from the local Aboriginal name for a plant which was abundan ...
was the last two lane section of highway between Sydney and Gundagai until it was bypassed with a dual carriageway on 14 August 2009, after a delay due to indigenous heritage issues, the construction contract was awarded to Abigroup
Abigroup was an Australian construction company.
History
Abigroup was established as Graham Evans & Co in 1957 as a civil engineering company within New South Wales, being renamed Abignano in 1961. In 1981 it was listed on the Australian Securiti ...
in February 2007.
Gundagai
At Snake Gully, adjacent to the highway north of Gundagai is the '' Dog on the Tuckerbox''. A statue (with a souvenir shop next door) was erected five miles (eight kilometres) from Gundagai. Snake Gully serves as a way station for many highway travellers.
Gundagai was bypassed on 25 March 1977 with the completion of the first Sheahan Bridge over the Murrumbidgee River
The Murrumbidgee River () is a major tributary of the Murray River within the Murray–Darling basin and the second longest river in Australia. It flows through the Australian state of New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, desce ...
. This bridge, named after Bill Sheahan, was the second longest road bridge in New South Wales (after the Sydney Harbour Bridge
The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a steel through arch bridge in Sydney, spanning Port Jackson, Sydney Harbour from the Sydney central business district, central business district (CBD) to the North Shore (Sydney), North Shore. The view of the bridg ...
), until its duplication on 17 May 2009, This is now the fourth-longest road bridge in New South Wales – longer than the Sydney Harbour Bridge. The original Sheahan Bridge was only one lane in each direction.
The Prince Alfred Bridge
The Prince Alfred Bridge is a wrought iron truss and timber beam partially-disused road bridge over the Murrumbidgee River and its floodplain at Middleton Drive, Gundagai, Cootamundra-Gundagai Regional Council, New South Wales, Australia. The ...
, on the old route of the highway across the Murrumbidgee floodplain, is of major engineering interest, as it is one of Australia's longest timber trestle bridges, as is the adjacent 1903 railway bridge. Gundagai was originally located on the river flats directly beside the Murrumbidgee River, but a disastrous flood in 1852 destroyed the town and drowned 89 people. The town was then relocated to its present position. A grade-separated interchange was completed at the intersection of the Highway and West Street in December 2006.
Tumblong
The route of the highway between Tumblong and Tarcutta is the third route of the highway in this location. The original route led west from Tumblong along the Murrumbidgee River, before turning south over difficult country, crossing what is now the Sturt Highway
Sturt Highway is an Australian national highway in New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia. It is an important road link for the transport of passengers and freight between Sydney and Adelaide and the regions situated adjacent to the r ...
and rejoining the current route of the highway as Lower Tarcutta Road. This was replaced in December 1938 by the first Tumblong deviation, to the east of the current route. The main features of this section of the highway were a deep, narrow cutting and the reinforced concrete bowstring arch bridge over Hillas Creek. This bridge has been preserved as it is one of only two bridges in New South Wales built to this design, and is visible on the western side of the highway close to the interchange with the Snowy Mountains Highway
Snowy Mountains Highway is a state highway located in New South Wales, Australia. Its two sections connect the New South Wales South Coast to the Monaro region, and the Monaro to the South West Slopes via the Snowy Mountains. The higher alti ...
. The second and current deviation opened to traffic on 21 November 1983.
Approximately southwest of Gundagai is the interchange with Sturt Highway
Sturt Highway is an Australian national highway in New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia. It is an important road link for the transport of passengers and freight between Sydney and Adelaide and the regions situated adjacent to the r ...
, which leads to Wagga Wagga
Wagga Wagga (; informally called Wagga) is a major regional city in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. Straddling the Murrumbidgee River, with an urban population of more than 56,000 as of June 2018, Wagga Wagga is the state's la ...
, Mildura
Mildura is a regional city in north-west Victoria, Australia. Located on the Victorian side of the Murray River, Mildura had a population of 34,565 in 2021. When nearby Wentworth, Irymple, Nichols Point and Merbein are included, the area had ...
and Adelaide
Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
.
Tarcutta
Tarcutta
Tarcutta is a town in south-western New South Wales, Australia. The town is south-west of Sydney, east of the Hume Highway, It was proclaimed as a village on 28 October 1890. As of 2016, the town had a population of 446.
It serves a local f ...
is located almost exactly halfway between Sydney and Melbourne and has been a popular stopover and change-over point for truck drivers making their way between the two cities. There is a memorial to truck drivers who have died on the local stretch of Hume Highway. It was near Tarcutta that the final section of Hume Highway was sealed in 1940. Construction began on a bypass of Tarcutta in 2010. The bypass, which passes west of the town, was opened to traffic on 15 November 2011. As improvements to the Hume Highway have reduced travelling time between Sydney and Melbourne to about nine hours driving time in good conditions, the town's importance to the average motorist has diminished.
Holbrook
Holbrook Holbrook may refer to:
Places
England
*Holbrook, Derbyshire, a village
* Holbrook, Somerset, a hamlet in Charlton Musgrove
* Holbrook, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, a former mining village in Mosborough ward, now known as Halfway
*Holbrook, Suffolk, ...
was called Germanton until anti-German sentiment during World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
led to the town and the shire being renamed in honour of the wartime submarine captain, Lt Holbrook who was awarded the Victoria Cross. From 1995, a feature of the town has been a partial reconstruction of HMAS ''Otway'', an Oberon class submarine. This landmark was in recognition of the town's namesake's connections with submarines. Holbrook had the only set of traffic signal
Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traffic.
Traffic light ...
s (for pedestrians
A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, whether walking or running. In modern times, the term usually refers to someone walking on a road or pavement, but this was not the case historically.
The meaning of pedestrian is displayed with ...
) that remained on the Hume Highway between the Sydney Orbital
The Sydney Orbital Network is a 110 kilometre motorway standard ring road around and through Sydney, the capital of New South Wales in Australia. It runs north from Sydney Airport, underneath the CBD to the North Shore, west to the Hills ...
and Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
's Western Ring Road
The M80 Ring Road (also known as simply the Ring Road or by the name of its constituent parts: Western Ring Road and Metropolitan Ring Road) is a currently incomplete urban freeway ring road around Melbourne, Australia. This article will dea ...
. A bypass, that was officially opened by Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
, Julia Gillard
Julia Eileen Gillard (born 29 September 1961) is an Australian former politician who served as the 27th prime minister of Australia from 2010 to 2013, holding office as leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). She is the first and only ...
and Minister for Infrastructure and Transport
The Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government in the Government of Australia is a position currently held by following the swearing in of the full Albanese ministry on 1 June 2022.
The Minister for Regio ...
, Anthony Albanese
Anthony Norman Albanese ( or ; born 2 March 1963) is an Australian politician serving as the 31st and current prime minister of Australia since 2022. He has been leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) since 2019 and the member of parlia ...
on 23 June 2013, did not open for traffic until August 2013.
Woomargama
Woomargama
Woomargama () is a locality in southwestern New South Wales, Australia. The locality is in the South West Slopes region, in the foothills of the Great Dividing Range. It is in the Greater Hume Shire local government area, south west of the state ...
, is a village between Holbrook and Albury which acts as a local service centre for a rich wool-growing area. The bypass of Woomargama was opened on 7 November 2011.
Bowna and Table Top
Table Top is a small town located approximately north of Albury, and Bowna is a locality about to the east of Table Top. In the 1950s, the road was diverted a much longer route to the northwest, intersecting with Olympic Highway
Olympic Highway is a rural road in the central western and south-eastern Riverina regions of New South Wales, Australia. The highway services rural communities and links Hume Highway with Mid-Western Highway and provides part of an alterna ...
south of Gerogery, to allow the construction of the Hume Dam
Hume Dam, formerly the Hume Weir, is a major dam across the Murray River downstream of its junction with the Mitta River in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. The dam's purpose includes flood mitigation, hydro-power, irrigation, ...
. This in turn was superseded by the dual carriage way which straightened the route.
Remnants of the old original road still exist as Old Sydney Road to the north east of Thurgoona and Plunketts Road in Bowna. The route is visible on aerial imagery (when water levels are low), following a line from the intersection with Table Top Road, pointing directly to Bowna and Mullengandra. Remnants of the old single lane highway used from the 1950s can be seen and used for vehicular traffic. This section was renamed as Bowna Road.
Albury–Wodonga
Albury
Albury () is a major regional city in New South Wales, Australia. It is located on the Hume Highway and the northern side of the Murray River. Albury is the seat of local government for the council area which also bears the city's name – the ...
's history is linked with the two famous Australian explorers, Hamilton Hume
Hamilton Hume (19 June 1797 – 19 April 1873) was an early explorer of the present-day Australian states of New South Wales and Victoria. In 1824, along with William Hovell, Hume participated in an expedition that first took an overland rout ...
and William Hovell
William Hilton Hovell (26 April 1786 – 9 November 1875) was an English explorer of Australia. With Hamilton Hume, he made an 1824 overland expedition from Sydney to Port Phillip (near the site of present-day Melbourne), and later explored the ...
, as the city's location sprung from their crossing of the Murray River
The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray) (Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta: ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is Australia's longest river at extent. Its tributaries include five of the next six longest r ...
. Albury, commonly associated with its Victorian twin, Wodonga
Wodonga
(Pallanganmiddang language, Waywurru: ''Wordonga'') is a city on the Victoria (Australia), Victorian side of the border with New South Wales, north-east of Melbourne, Australia. It is located wholly within the boundaries of the City of ...
, is one of the few rural Australian cities to experience a boom, mainly from industrialisation in recent times.
The Albury bypass was first proposed in 1964 but only opened on 6 March 2007. Following a series of announcements and changes of plans through the 1990s, when Albury residents failed to agree on whether an 'internal' or 'external' bypass route was more appropriate, the 'internal bypass' option was chosen. Approval was granted in 2004 and construction, by Abigroup
Abigroup was an Australian construction company.
History
Abigroup was established as Graham Evans & Co in 1957 as a civil engineering company within New South Wales, being renamed Abignano in 1961. In 1981 it was listed on the Australian Securiti ...
, began in January 2005. The route is parallel to and on the eastern side of the Sydney–Melbourne railway, beginning at the railway overpass north of Albury. After crossing the Murray River, the bypass crosses the railway to rejoin the previous highway at the southern end of the Lincoln Causeway, connecting to the Wodonga bypass. The Albury bypass includes a freeway standard connection to Murray Valley Highway
Murray Valley Highway is a state highway located in Victoria and New South Wales, Australia. The popular tourist route mostly follows the southern bank of the Murray River and effectively acts as the northernmost highway in Victoria. For all b ...
at Bandiana, east of Wodonga.
Wangaratta
Wangaratta
Wangaratta ( ) is a city in the northeast of Victoria, Australia, from Melbourne along the Hume Highway. The city had an estimated urban population of 19,318 at June 2018. Wangaratta has recorded a population growth rate of almost 1% annually ...
is, after Wodonga, the largest centre in northeast Victoria, with a population of approximately 17,000 at the . Wangaratta is at the junction of the Great Alpine Road
}
The Great Alpine Road (B500) is a country tourist road in Victoria, Australia, running from Wangaratta in the north to Bairnsdale in the east, and passing through the Victorian Alps. The road was given its current name because it was consid ...
. Hume and Hovell passed through this area on their 1824 expedition and the town was founded in 1837 when the surrounding area was opened for farming. The town was bypassed in 1994.
Attractions include Merriwa Park, a sunken garden adjacent to the King River, Airworld at Wangaratta Airport, and old goldfield areas of nearby Beechworth
Beechworth is a well-preserved historical town located in the north-east of Victoria, Australia, famous for its major growth during the gold rush days of the mid-1850s. At the , Beechworth had a population of 3,859.
Beechworth's many histor ...
and Chiltern.
Benalla
Benalla
Benalla
is a small city located on the Broken River gateway to the High Country north-eastern region of Victoria, Australia, about north east of the state capital Melbourne. At the the population was 10,822.
It is the administrative cent ...
is a large town located just off Hume Freeway between Melbourne and Wangaratta. Founded in 1848, growth was slow until a goldrush in the 1850s. It had many associations with the Kelly gang and the courthouse was the venue for a number of their trials. It also has a memorial to the Australian war hero Sir Edward 'Weary' Dunlop, an Australian doctor who acted as a leader to allied troops on the Thailand-Burma Railway
The Burma Railway, also known as the Siam–Burma Railway, Thai–Burma Railway and similar names, or as the Death Railway, is a railway between Ban Pong, Thailand and Thanbyuzayat, Burma (now called Myanmar). It was built from 1940 to 1943 ...
in World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
Euroa
Euroa
Euroa is a town in the Shire of Strathbogie in the north-east of Victoria, Australia. At the 2016 census, Euroa's population was 3,275.
The name Euroa comes from an Aboriginal word in the old local dialect meaning 'joyful'.
History
Major T ...
is famous for a Ned Kelly
Edward Kelly (December 1854 – 11 November 1880) was an Australian bushranger, outlaw, gang leader and convicted police-murderer. One of the last bushrangers, he is known for wearing a suit of bulletproof armour during his final shootout wi ...
bank robbery. The town is located on the Seven Creeks and has pretty gardens and a number of attractive 19th century buildings.
Seymour
The bypass of Seymour opened in December 1982. Seymour remains on the Goulburn Valley Highway
Goulburn Valley Highway is a highway located in Victoria, Australia. The section north of the Hume Freeway is part of the Melbourne to Brisbane National Highway (together with Hume Freeway) and is the main link between these two cities as well a ...
. The town is in the rich Goulburn Valley which supports the local vineyards. The large Puckapunyal
Puckapunyal (more formally the Puckapunyal Military Area, but also known as the Puckapunyal Camp or Puckapunyal Army Base, and colloquially as "Pucka") is an Australian Army training facility and base 10 km west of Seymour, in central Vi ...
military base is located west of Seymour. Once the centre of the bushranging area of Victoria, it has a museum which displays many period relics of that era. It was until the 1970s a major railway maintenance centre, and part of the railway workshops now houses a railway museum. The museum's collection of rolling stock, including State carriages used by governors and monarchs, is extensive.
Kalkallo
Construction of the Donnybrook Road interchange, immediately to the north of the Craigieburn Bypass, replaced the dangerous at-grade intersection with (C723) at Kalkallo
Kalkallo is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Hume local government area. Kalkallo recorded a population of 5,548 at the 2021 census.
Located on the Hume Fr ...
an overpass and entry/exit ramps in both directions, at a cost of $32 million. Works commenced in December 2007 and completion occurred in March 2009, three months ahead of schedule.
Craigieburn
Prior to the opening of the Craigieburn Bypass in 2005, the Hume Highway skirted Craigieburn (the town centre was bypassed in the 1950s). The section of the highway from Craigieburn to Campbellfield (on Melbourne's outskirts) was a significant bottleneck, with 12 sets of traffic signals
Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traffic.
Traffic light ...
in section of road. The Craigieburn Bypass now links directly to the Western and Metropolitan Ring Roads. By 2013, the Old Hume Highway (Sydney Road) section from Fawkner to Campbellfield was again becoming a bottleneck due to poor traffic signal coordination. There was some opposition for the bypass by several local governments in the northern suburbs of Melbourne, including the City of Darebin
The City of Darebin is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, in the northern suburbs of Melbourne. It has an area of and in June 2018 Darebin had a population of 161,609. Municipal offices are located at 350 High Street, Preston.
Dar ...
and the City of Moreland
The City of Merri-bek is a Local government areas of Victoria, local government area in metropolitan Melbourne, Australia. It comprises the inner northern suburbs between 4 and 11 kilometres from the Melbourne city centre, Melbourne CBD. The ...
, as well as local environmental groups. Their alternative proposal was rejected by the state government. A pedestrian and cyclist
Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...
cement path – the Galada Tamboore Pathway – runs the length of the bypass and connects with the Metropolitan Ring Road path, from where it is possible to connect to the Merri Creek Trail
__NOTOC__
The Merri Creek Trail is a shared use path for cyclists and pedestrians that follows the Merri Creek through the northern suburbs of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia.
Route
The path commences at Dights Falls near where Merri Creek ente ...
, Western Ring Road Trail
__NOTOC__
The M80 Trail (previously known as the Western Ring Road Trail) is a shared-use path for cyclists and pedestrians that bridges the northern suburbs and follows the Western Ring Road/Metropolitan Ring Road (M80) freeway in Melbourne, ...
, the City of Whittlesea Public Gardens and Edgars Road. The Craigieburn Bypass is shown in the 1969 Melbourne Transportation Plan
The 1969 Melbourne Transportation Plan was a road and rail transport plan for Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia, instituted by Henry Bolte's state government. Most prominently, the plan recommended the provision of an extensive ...
as part of the F2 Freeway corridor, which extended south along Merri Creek, Hoddle St, Barkly St in St Kilda, south through Elwood and Brighton, then east along South Road, connecting to the Dingley Freeway corridor.
Alternative Routes
The main alternative route between Sydney and Melbourne is the Princes Highway
Princes Highway is a major road in Australia, extending from Sydney via Melbourne to Adelaide through the states of New South Wales, Victoria (Australia), Victoria and South Australia. It has a length of (along Highway 1) or via the former ...
/Princes Freeway
Princes Freeway is a 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 H ...
/Princes Motorway
The Princes Motorway is a predominantly dual carriage untolled motorway that links Sydney to Wollongong and further south through the Illawarra region to . Part of the Australian Highway 1 network, the motorway is designated with the route ...
route (A1/M1) which follows the coast for most of its length. Other inland alternate routes include the Olympic Highway
Olympic Highway is a rural road in the central western and south-eastern Riverina regions of New South Wales, Australia. The highway services rural communities and links Hume Highway with Mid-Western Highway and provides part of an alterna ...
route (A41) between Albury
Albury () is a major regional city in New South Wales, Australia. It is located on the Hume Highway and the northern side of the Murray River. Albury is the seat of local government for the council area which also bears the city's name – the ...
and Sydney via Wagga Wagga
Wagga Wagga (; informally called Wagga) is a major regional city in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia. Straddling the Murrumbidgee River, with an urban population of more than 56,000 as of June 2018, Wagga Wagga is the state's la ...
, Cowra
Cowra is a small town in the Central West region of New South Wales, Australia. It is the largest population centre and the council seat for the Cowra Shire, with a population of 9,863.
Cowra is located approximately above sea level, on the ...
and Bathurst, and also the Federal Highway Federal Highways and Federal Routes can be found in:
*Australia: Federal Highway
*Brazil: Brazilian Federal Highway and Brazilian Highway System
*Germany: ''Bundesstraßen''
*Malaysia: Federal Highway and Malaysian Federal Roads System
*Mexic ...
/ Monaro Highway
Monaro Highway is a highway in Victoria, New South Wales, and the Australian Capital Territory, in Australia, linking in Victoria to Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) via the Monaro region. From its southern terminus, it fol ...
route (M23/A23/B23) via Canberra which links with Hume Highway near Goulburn
Goulburn ( ) is a regional city in the Southern Tablelands of the Australian state of New South Wales, approximately south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Canberra. It was proclaimed as Australia's first inland city through letters pate ...
and Princes Highway in East Gippsland.
Incidents
In 1989, the professional golfer Jerry Stolhand
Jerry Stolhand (April 17, 1935 – February 1, 1989) was an American golfer. Stolhand turned pro in the mid-1950s and quickly had success, winning the Louisiana State Open. However, he ultimately regained his amateur status and moved to Hawaii. ...
died in a car accident on the highway at Breadalbane, New South Wales. The Hume Highway was also where notorious serial killer Ivan Milat
Ivan Robert Marko Milat (27 December 1944 – 27 October 2019) was an Australian serial killer who was convicted in the backpacker murders in 1996. Commonly known as the Backpacker Murderer, Milat captured, assaulted, robbed and murdered two me ...
picked up several of his victims.
See also
* Old Hume Highway
The Old Hume Highway, an urban and rural road, may be described as any part of an earlier route of the Hume Highway, which traverses Victoria and New South Wales between the cities of Sydney and Melbourne in Australia. In some places, the hi ...
* Highways in Australia
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. Prio ...
* Highways in New South Wales
The present highway network in New South Wales, Australia was established in August 1928 when the Country Roads Board (the predecessor of the Department of Main Roads, Roads & Traffic Authority and Roads & Maritime Services) superseded the 19 ...
* Highways in Victoria
The highways in Victoria are the highest density in any state in Australia. Unlike Australia's other mainland states where vast areas are very sparsely inhabited "outback", population centres spread out over most of the state, with only the ...
* Freeways in Australia
Australian Capital Territory Canberra region
* Majura Parkway
Other freeways (no route number)
* Adelaide Avenue
* Yarra Glen
* Capital Circle
* Gungahlin Drive Extension
* Parkes Way
* Tuggeranong Parkway
Gallery
File:High ...
* Freeways in New South Wales
* Freeways in Victoria
References
Bibliography
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External links
Driving the Hume Hwy – 900km in 6 minutes – Youtube video
* ttp://www.theage.com.au/news/National/Libs-to-finish-Hume-duplication-by-2012/2007/11/14/1194766735989.html Libs to finish Hume duplication by 2012br>QBR (Queensland Business review) Coalition to complete duplication of Hume Highway by 2012
Construction news
Hume Highway, Abigroup
Coolac bypass, Abigroup
Southern Alliance
* ttp://www.theage.com.au/news/National/Libs-to-finish-Hume-duplication-by-2012/2007/11/14/1194766735989.html Liberals to finish Hume duplication by 2012
QBR (Queensland Business review) Coalition to complete duplication of Hume Highway by 2012
* ttp://www.rta.nsw.gov.au/roadprojects/projects/south_western_region/hume_hway_dup/holbrook_bypass/index.html
{{Road infrastructure in Victoria
Streets in Sydney
Roads in Victoria (Australia)
Roads in New South Wales
Highways and freeways in Melbourne
Transport in the City of Hume
Wangaratta
Albury, New South Wales
Wodonga
Goulburn
City of Campbelltown (New South Wales)