Hervey Range Developmental Road (alternate spellings: "Herveys", "Hervey's") is a continuous road route in the Townsville and Charters Towers 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. It is designated as State Route 72. It is a state-controlled regional road (number 83A).

Route description

The road commences as Hervey Range Road (State Route 72) at an intersection with Garbutt–Upper Ross Road (Thuringowa Drive / Riverway Drive) and Ross River Road (see below), on a mid-point of and . State Route 72 continues east on Ross River Road. The road proceeds west through Thuringowa Central, passing between Kirwan and , and crossing the

Bohle River The Bohle River is a river located in North Queensland, Australia. Course and features The headwaters of the river rise in the Hervey Range south of and flows north along the coastal plain west of Lake Ross and then north, parallel with Ros ...

as it enters . Here it runs under the Bruce Highway at an incomplete

diamond interchange A diamond interchange is a common type of road junction, used where a controlled-access highway crosses a minor road. Design The freeway itself is grade-separated from the minor road, one crossing the other over a bridge. Approaching the ...

. From the start to this point the road has a four-lane divided carriageway, which reverts to two lanes undivided just west of the Bruce Highway. Continuing west the road passes between and , and then crosses the Alice River, a tributary of the Black River, and follows the boundary between the localities of and . After crossing Scrubby Creek and Canal Creek, passing the exit to Black River Road to the north-east, entering Hervey Range, and crossing Log Creek, the road turns south-east. It runs parallel to the Black River as it approaches the ascent of the

Hervey Range The Hervey Range is a large mountain range about north of Townsville, in Queensland, Australia. It is one of the highest peaks in the Townsville region and is also the location of the Herveys Range Heritage Tea Rooms. The highest point of the ...

. At the peak of the range, following a circuitous climb, it passes through the southern tip of , enters the Charters Towers Region and then continues to the south-east, still in the locality of Hervey Range. On entering the locality of the road turns to the west. It continues west, passing the exit to Dotswood Road to the south and crossing several creeks and the Star River before reaching the Burdekin River, which it crosses into the locality of . After turning south-west it reaches an intersection with the

Gregory Highway The Gregory Highway is a state highway in Queensland, Australia that serves the major coal-mining centres of Central Queensland. The highway was named after Augustus Gregory, an early explorer. Route description The highway runs southward from ...

, where it ends. About of this road has a gradient greater than 5%, of which is between 10 and 15%, and is greater than 15%. The highest point on the road is and the lowest is . The road is fully sealed. For communities along the Gulf Developmental Road, this road is part of the shortest route to east coast centres from Townsville to .

Road widening

A project to widen more than of this road, at a cost of $8.9 million, was to be completed late in 2021.

Ross River Road

Ross River Road is a state-controlled district road (number 612). It starts at an intersection with Townsville Connection Road (Bowen Road / Charters Towers Road) (State Route 17) in . It runs west as State Route 72, crossing Douglas-Garbutt Road (Nathan Street), for to , where it ends at an intersection with Garbutt–Upper Ross Road (Thuringowa Drive / Riverway Drive), while State Route 72 continues west on Hervey Range Road. The road's only major intersection is with Douglas–Garbutt Road.

History

The original Hervey Range Road, now known as Page Road, was a steep and difficult track. It was constructed in 1865, and was then the only way to travel from Townsville to the west. Gold was discovered in in 1871.Charters Towers Story
. Citigold Corporation. January 2010. Retrieved 30 April 2016. In the period 1872 to 1899 the population grew to about 25,000. 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 ...

opened in 1882, effectively replacing a two-day coach ride from Townsville for new arrivals. The current Hervey's Range Road (as it was then called) was opened in April, 1933.

Major intersections

All distances are from Google Maps.

References