Metroads were the primary

road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

routes serving the

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 ...

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 ...

metropolitan areas from the 1990s to the early 2010s. The Metroads formed a network of radial and circumferential routes throughout the cities, simplifying navigation. Metroads have been progressively phased out in both Sydney and Brisbane, replaced by alphanumeric route numbers. Brisbane is the only city currently retaining the Metroad system.

History

Historically, National Routes passed through city centres and formed some of the main thoroughfares within Australia's largest cities. However urban growth led to massive congestion in the inner city areas. To bypass these centres, new roads were either constructed or main suburban roads were linked together to form

ring road A ring road (also known as circular road, beltline, beltway, circumferential (high)way, loop, bypass or orbital) is a road or a series of connected roads encircling a town, city, or country. The most common purpose of a ring road is to assist i ...

s linking one National Route to the other. The earliest scheme was adopted in Sydney in 1964, the Ring Road scheme. They had special markers for identification. Growth of

urban sprawl Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city." Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted growt ...

made intra-urban navigation difficult. Many States introduced

State Route A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either ''numbered'' or ''maintained'' by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered by a ...

systems in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s and many roads within metropolitan areas were included. This scheme was adopted by most major cities. In Sydney the State Routes superseded the Ring Road scheme. Urban freeways in Sydney and Brisbane had their own route marking scheme. However, it was later realised that the multiplicity of urban route marking schemes led to confusion. In the 1990s, these were streamlined in the new Metroad scheme. This scheme ensures that main priority routes are clearly identified and marked. As far as possible, urban freeways are absorbed into the system. It was adopted in Sydney in 1993 and Brisbane in 1996. Metroads usually completely replaced the State Routes and National Routes along their routes; however, State Routes not on designated Metroads were usually left untampered. Metroad routes in both Sydney and Brisbane are being replaced by alphanumeric routes. Brisbane Metroads began to be phased out around 2010, with Sydney Metroads completely phased out at the end of 2013. As of 2015, the Department of Main Roads in Queensland have no plans to convert/decommission the remaining Metroad sections within Brisbane.

List of Metroads

Sydney Metroads

The Metroad navigation system was introduced to Sydney in 1992, with six routes (Metroads 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7). The scheme was extended in 1998-1999 with the signposting of Metroads 6, 9 and 10 (there was never a Metroad 8). All Metroads in Sydney were completely replaced in 2013 with equivalent alphanumeric road markers.

Former Metroads

* Metroad 1 -

Wahroonga Wahroonga is a suburb in the Upper North Shore of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, 18 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government areas of Ku-ring-gai Council and Hornsby Shire. ...

Waterfall A waterfall is a point in a river or stream where water flows over a vertical drop or a series of steep drops. Waterfalls also occur where meltwater drops over the edge of a tabular iceberg or ice shelf. Waterfalls can be formed in several wa ...

via the M1

Eastern Distributor The Eastern Distributor is a motorway in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Part of the M1, the motorway links the Sydney central business district with Sydney Airport. The centre-piece is a tunnel running from Woolloomooloo to Surry Hil ...

and the city of

- Replaced by M1 and A1 * Metroad 2 - Artarmon to

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

via the

Lane Cove Tunnel The Lane Cove Tunnel is an A$1.1 billion, 3.6 km twin-tunnel tollway in Sydney, Australia, which connects the M2 Motorway at North Ryde with the Gore Hill Freeway at Artarmon. It is owned by toll road operator Transurban and forms par ...

and M2 - Replaced by M2 and A2 * Metroad 3 - Blakehurst to Mona Vale via

Hurstville Hurstville is a suburb in Southern Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is 16 kilometres south of the Sydney CBD and is part of the St George area. Hurstville is the administrative centre of the local government area of the Georges Riv ...

Olympic Park An Olympic Park is a sports campus for hosting the Olympic Games. Typically it contains the Olympic Stadium and the International Broadcast Centre. It may also contain the Olympic Village or some of the other sports venues, such as the aquatics ...

Ryde Ryde is an English seaside town and civil parish on the north-east coast of the Isle of Wight. The built-up area had a population of 23,999 according to the 2011 Census and an estimate of 24,847 in 2019. Its growth as a seaside resort came af ...

Macquarie Park Macquarie Park () is a suburb in the Northern Sydney region of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Macquarie Park is located 13 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of the City of Ryde. ...

and St Ives - Replaced by the A3 * Metroad 4 -

Lapstone Lapstone is a township on the eastern escarpment of the Blue Mountains in New South Wales, Australia. Elevation 160 m (525 ft). Lapstone is located 62 kilometres west of the Sydney CBD in the local government area of the City of Blu ...

via

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 ...

and the M4 - Replaced by the M4 and A4 * Metroad 5 -

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 ...

to Campbelltown via the M5 - Replaced by the M5 and M31 Hume Motorway * Metroad 6 -

Heathcote Heathcote may refer to: Places in Australia *Heathcote, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney **Electoral district of Heathcote, a seat in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly **Heathcote National Park ** Parish of Heathcote a parish of Cumberla ...

to Carlingford via

Bankstown Bankstown is a suburb south west of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 16 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district and is located in the local government area of the City of Canterbury-Bankstown, hav ...

Lidcombe Lidcombe is a suburb in western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Lidcombe is located west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Cumberland Council, with a small industrial part in the north ...

and

Silverwater Silverwater is a suburb in western Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Silverwater is located 15 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district on the southern bank of the Parramatta River within the local governme ...

- Replaced by the A6 * Metroad 7 -

Casula Casula is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 34 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Liverpool. Casula is the first suburb immediatel ...

via the

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/ ...

- Replaced by A28 and M7 * Metroad 9 - Campbelltown to

- Replaced by the A9 * Metroad 10 - North Sydney to Mona Vale via

Mosman Mosman is a suburb on the Lower North Shore region of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Mosman is located 8 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local governm ...

and

Dee Why Dee Why is a coastal suburb of northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia, 18 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district. It is the administrative centre of the local government area of Northern Be ...

. - Replaced by A8 Sections of Metroads 1, 2, 5, and 7 formed the

Sydney Orbital Network 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 Dist ...

circumnavigating the Sydney metropolitan area.

= Unofficial NSW Metroads

= * - Signs in Tamworth incorrectly showed Metroad 95 instead of State Route 95

Brisbane Metroads

Brisbane's Metroad system employed odd numbers for north-to-south alignments and even numbers for east-to-west alignments. Most Metroads have since been completely or partially replaced with equivalent alphanumeric road markers. Brisbane is the only city currently retaining the Metroad system.

Current Metroads

* Metroad 2 –

Rocklea Rocklea is a suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , Rocklea had a population of 1,595 people. Geography Rocklea is located 9 kilometres south of the city. The west of the suburb is bordered by the Oxley Creek. The ...

Mackenzie Mackenzie, Mckenzie, MacKenzie, or McKenzie may refer to: People * Mackenzie (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Mackenzie (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Clan Mackenzie, a S ...

via Granard Road, Riawena Road, Kessels Road, and Mt Gravatt–Capalaba Road * Metroad 5 –

Toowong Toowong is a riverside suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , Toowong had a population of 10,830 people. Geography Toowong is situated between Mount Coot-tha and the Brisbane River and is made up of rolling hills ...

to Kedron via Mount Coot–Tha Road, Frederick Street, Rouen Road, Boundary Road, Macgregor Terrace, Jubilee Terrace, Elimatta Drive, Stewart Road, Wardell Street, South Pine Road, and Stafford Road

Former Metroads

* Metroad 1 – M1 - End of Pacific Motorway ( Tugun) to

Cooroy Cooroy is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Noosa, Queensland, Australia. In the the locality of Cooroy had a population of 3,791 people. Geography Cooroy is inland from the northern Sunshine Coast hinterland about west of Noosa H ...

* Metroad 2 –

Cunningham Highway The Cunningham Highway is a national highway located in south-eastern Queensland, Australia. The highway links the Darling Downs region with the urbanised outskirts of via Cunninghams Gap. The Cunningham carries the National Highway 15 shie ...

(National Highway 15) /

Warrego Highway The Warrego Highway is located in southern Queensland, Australia. It connects coastal centres to the south western areas of the state, and is approximately 715 km in length. It takes its name from the Warrego River, which is the endpoint ...

(National Highway A2) Junction to

Gateway Motorway The Gateway Motorway (M2 to Eight Mile Plains and M1 to Pine River) is a major tolled motorway in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia which includes the Sir Leo Hielscher Bridges (former Gateway Bridge). The motorway is operated by toll road opera ...

(Metroad 1) * Metroad 3 –

Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

Junction (Metroad 1) to

Gympie Arterial Road The Gympie Arterial Road is a freeway in the northern suburbs of Brisbane in Queensland, Australia. The road starts in Carseldine, Queensland, Carseldine at Gympie Road and terminates at the Gateway Motorway where it becomes the Bruce Highway. ...

Junction (Metroad 1) * Metroad 4 –

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line r ...

Logan Motorway The M2/M6 Logan Motorway is a 30-kilometre toll road between Ipswich and the M1 or Pacific Motorway at Loganholme, and the Gateway Motorway, providing access to the Gold Coast on the eastern seaboard and to the rural areas of the Darling Down ...

Junction (Metroad 2) to

Junction (Metroad 1) * Metroad 5 –

Ipswich Motorway The Ipswich Motorway (M7) is a major road that connects Brisbane and Ipswich in South East Queensland, Australia. It commences at the junction of Ipswich Road and Granard Road and proceeds through to the M2 Logan Motorway interchange. It is t ...

(Metroad 2) to

Gympie Road Gympie Road is a major road in the northern suburbs of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The road forms part of the main road route from the Brisbane Central Business District (CBD) to the northern suburbs, Sunshine Coast and east coast of Qu ...

(Metroad 3) * Metroad 6 – Logan/

Junction (Metroad 4) to Pacific Motorway (Metroad 1)

References

External links

Queensland Motorways
{{Road infrastructure in Brisbane Highways in Australia Brisbane Metroads

History

List of Metroads

Sydney Metroads

Former Metroads

= Unofficial NSW Metroads

Brisbane Metroads

Current Metroads

Former Metroads

See also

References

External links