Lincoln Highway is a highway in
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which in ...
which links the cities of
Port Augusta
Port Augusta (''Goordnada'' in the revived indigenous Barngarla language) is a coastal city in South Australia about by road from the state capital, Adelaide. Most of the city is on the eastern shores of Spencer Gulf, immediately south of the ...
and
Port Lincoln
Port Lincoln is a city on the Lower Eyre Peninsula in the Australian states and territories of Australia, state of South Australia. Known as Galinyala by the traditional owners, the Barngarla people, it is situated on the shore of Boston Bay, ...
located on the east coast of
Eyre Peninsula
The Eyre Peninsula is a triangular peninsula in South Australia. It is bounded by the Spencer Gulf on the east, the Great Australian Bight on the west, and the Gawler Ranges to the north.
Earlier called Eyre's Peninsula, it was named after e ...
over a distance of .
Lincoln Highway – along with
Flinders Highway – presents an alternative but somewhat longer coastal route between Ceduna and
Port Augusta
Port Augusta (''Goordnada'' in the revived indigenous Barngarla language) is a coastal city in South Australia about by road from the state capital, Adelaide. Most of the city is on the eastern shores of Spencer Gulf, immediately south of the ...
, compared to the more direct route along
Eyre Highway
Eyre Highway is a highway linking Western Australia and South Australia via the Nullarbor Plain. Signed as National Highways 1 and A1, it forms part of Highway 1 (Australia), Highway 1 and the National Highway (Australia), Australian Nat ...
. It is designated route B100.
Route
After leaving Port Augusta, the highway passes through hot and arid saltbush-covered and scrub terrain.
It soon passes through the largest and most significant town along the route, which is the steel city of
Whyalla
Whyalla is a city in South Australia. It was founded as Hummock's Hill, and was known by that name until 1916. It is the fourth most populous city in the Australian state of South Australia after Adelaide, Mount Gambier, and Gawler, and along ...
. Continuing southwest it connects with such coastal towns as
Cowell,
Port Neill
Port Neill (formerly Carrow) is a small coastal town on the eastern side of the Eyre Peninsula, in South Australia about 3 km off the Lincoln Highway between the major towns of Whyalla and Port Lincoln. It is 576 km by road from Adelaid ...
and
Arno Bay which have good
fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...
spots. The terrain here is interspersed with broad-acre grain cropping in suitable localities, and the scenery gets greener the more it heads southwest towards Port Lincoln.
Sealed with bitumen, it has many straight stretches with few steep inclines or declines, and for the most part has a 110 km/h speed limit. It has one lane in each direction, with few overtaking lanes.
The highway runs along the eastern coast of the Eyre Peninsula but just so far inland as to allow only glimpses of the Gulf in certain places.
Port Lincoln itself is a prosperous
fishing port
A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Hamburg, Manche ...
and an important grain terminal serving the Eyre Peninsula wheatbelt.
History
The first Europeans to traverse most of this route, in April 1840, were Governor
Gawler
Gawler, established in 1839, is the oldest country town in the state of South Australia. It was named after the second Governor (British Vice-Regal representative) of the colony of South Australia, George Gawler. It is about north of the st ...
and
John Hill, who explored on horseback from Port Lincoln to the
Middleback Range
The Middleback Range is a mountain range on the eastern side of Eyre Peninsula in South Australia. The Middleback Range has been a source of iron ore for over a century, particularly to feed the Whyalla Steelworks. Mines in the region were first ...
near the location of the site of Whyalla.
The South Australian government decreed "the road from Port Augusta to Port Lincoln will be known as the Lincoln Highway", taking effect on 1 July 1938.
Major junctions
See also
*
Highways in Australia
Highways in Australia are generally high capacity roads managed by states and territories of Australia, state and territory government agencies, though Australia's federal government contributes funding for important links between capital cit ...
*
List of highways in South Australia
South Australia is distinctly divided into two main areas; the well watered and populated southeastern corner and the arid outback for the rest of the state. As a result, highways are concentrated mainly in the southeast. The Eyre Highway to ...
*
Flinders Highway, South Australia
Flinders Highway connects the South Australian towns of Ceduna, South Australia, Ceduna and Port Lincoln, a distance of Flinders Highway – along with Lincoln Highway, South Australia, Lincoln Highway – presents an alternative but somewhat lo ...
References
{{Eyre Peninsula
Highways in South Australia
Eyre Peninsula