Rockhampton–Emu Park Road is a continuous road route in the

Rockhampton Rockhampton is a city in the Rockhampton Region of Central Queensland, Australia. The population of Rockhampton in June 2021 was 79,967, Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. making it the fourth-largest city in the state outside of the ...

and

Livingstone Livingstone may refer to: * Livingstone (name), a Scottish surname and a given name. **David Livingstone (1813–1873), Scottish physician, missionary and explorer, after whom many other Livingstones are named Places *Livingstone Falls, on the Con ...

local government areas of

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

, Australia. The route is designated as State Route 4 (Regional) and Tourist Drive 10. It is a state-controlled regional road (number 194).

Route description

Rockhampton–Emu Park Road commences at an intersection with the

Rockhampton–Yeppoon Road Rockhampton–Yeppoon Road is a non-continuous road route in the Rockhampton and Livingstone local government areas of Queensland, Australia. Most of the route is designated as State Route 4 (Regional) and Tourist Drive 10. It is a state-con ...

in , a suburb of . Starting as Bridge Street it runs south-east and then turns east as Lakes Creek Road, running along the boundary between Berserker and . It runs through the southern part of and then turns south-east, following the

Fitzroy River Fitzroy or FitzRoy may refer to: People As a given name *Several members of the Somerset family (Dukes of Beaufort) have this as a middle-name: **FitzRoy Somerset, 1st Baron Raglan (1788–1855) ** Henry Charles FitzRoy Somerset, 8th Duke of Beau ...

through . It enters and continues south-east for a short distance before turning north-east. It continues north-east through and before turning east through the southern tip of and entering . Land use along the road is mainly rural, but with business and residential developments at each end.

Road condition

The road is fully sealed, with almost no dual carriageway. The following projects aim to improve the condition of sections of this road.

Road train access to Rockhampton

The project for upgrading between saleyards and the Rockhampton abattoirs to provide access for Type 1 Road Trains, funded by the Northern Australia Beef Roads Program, was completed by early 2021 at a total cost of $30 million. It involved about of road improvements on four roads: * Capricorn Highway – from Saleyards Road at Gracemere to the Bruce Highway roundabout at Rochhampton (). * Bruce Highway – from the Capricorn Highway roundabout to the Yaamba Road intersection (). *

– from the Bruce Highway intersection south-west to the Emu Park Road intersection (. * Rockhampton–Emu Park Road – from the Rockhampton–Yeppoon Road intersection to St Christophers Chapel Road at Nerimbera ().

Overtaking lanes and safety improvements

A project to provide overtaking lanes and priority safety and capacity improvements, at a cost of $19 million, is planned for construction from late 2022 to mid-2024.

History

The

Archer brothers The Archer brothers were among the earliest European settlers in Queensland, Australia. They were explorers and pastoralists. Seven sons of William Archer, a Scottish timber merchant, they spent varying amounts of time in the colony of New Sou ...

established the Gracemere

pastoral run A pastoral lease, sometimes called a pastoral run, is an arrangement used in both Australia and New Zealand where government-owned Crown land is leased out to graziers for the purpose of livestock grazing on rangelands. Australia Pastoral lea ...

in 1855, on land that included the present site of Rockhampton. They made use of the

for shipping supplies and produce, and built a woolshed on the river bank. They also played a role in coining the name "Rockhampton" for their riverside worksite.McDonald, L: "Rockhampton – A History of City & District", page 19. Rockhampton City Council, 1976 Permanent settlement at the town site began in 1856, and the town was proclaimed and surveyed in 1858. The region expanded quickly due to good available land and water. Land to the north of the river was opened for settlement in the late 1850s, and became the location of both large holdings and small farms. A large pastoral run was established along the length of the

Capricorn Coast The Capricorn Coast is a stretch of coastline in Central Queensland, Australia and is part of the Shire of Livingstone (formerly part of Rockhampton Region). Geography The Capricorn Coasts takes its name from Cape Capricorn () on Curtis Is ...

in 1865, extending from the area south towards what is now Emu Park. European settlement in the Emu Park district began in the 1860s when John Jardine established a cattle grazing property to the south, at

Zilzie Zilzie is a coastal locality in the Livingstone Shire, Queensland, Australia. In the , Zilzie had a population of 2,713 people. Geography Contiguous with Emu Park, the town is located on the Capricorn Coast, north north west of the state capi ...

. Emu Park township was established in the 1870s when several Rockhampton families built seaside holiday houses on the hills overlooking the two beaches that are a feature of the town. The first road to the district was established at this time, and small farms were set up along it. This road was the only access to the district until 1888, when the

railway Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...

arrived. The first bridge across the Fitzroy River was opened in 1881, replacing a steam ferry and increasing road usage to Emu Park.

Current usage

The first from Berserker is used by road trains carrying cattle to the Rockhampton abattoirs. In conjunction with Rockhampton-Yeppoon Road and the

Scenic Highway A scenic route, tourist road, tourist route, tourist drive, holiday route, theme route, or scenic byway is a specially designated road or waterway that travels through an area of natural or cultural beauty. It often passes by scenic viewpoint ...

, it is a popular tourist drive.

Major intersections

All distances are from Google Maps.

Notes

References

Roads in Queensland {{DEFAULTSORT:Rockhampton-Emu Park Road