Everything about Princes Freeway totally explained
The
Princes Freeway is a 196 kilometre, 2 section freeway, which links
Melbourne to
Geelong on the west and
Morwell on the east. It continues beyond these extremities as the
Princes Highway towards
Adelaide to the west and
Sydney to the east. The freeway bears the designation
M1.
The western section linking Geelong and Melbourne is an important commuter and freight route between the two cities; the eastern section links Melbourne with the
Latrobe Valley. The entire freeway is one of the busiest sections of rural highway in Victoria, used by large numbers of freight and commercial vehicles and provides access to tourist attractions in central and east
Gippsland. It supports Victoria's rural industries and tourism.
Current Route
The western section (also known as Princes Freeway West or Geelong Road) starts from
Altona at the West Gate Interchange, where the
Western Ring Road and the old Geelong Road can be accessed by off ramps, and ends at Geelong. This section is a three lane, high quality freeway with a speed limit of 100km/h.
The eastern section (also known as Princes Freeway East) starts from
Yarragon, a two lane divided freeway. Traffic must still travel through the towns of
Yarragon and
Trafalgar (where planning for a bypass is underway), where the road reverts to the Princes Highway. Even in the "freeway" sections, there are several highway standard at-grade intersections, which are proven to be highly dangerous . There are no plans to eliminate them.
The western and eastern sections are connected together through the Melbourne suburbs by the
West Gate Freeway,
CityLink and the
Monash Freeway. These five sections of road together constitute the route
M1 which is part of National
Highway 1.
The Princes Freeway subsumes and bypasses most sections of the older
Princes Highway. Former bypassed sections of the
Princes Highway are generally signed with a
National Route Alt 1 shield (within eastern Melbourne) or designated sequentially from
C101 to
C107.
Interchanges
Western section (as Princes Freeway West)
Continues from
future Geelong Ring Road : Corio. start of freeway
The
M1 continues on as
West Gate Freeway.
Eastern section (as Princes Freeway East)
Continues from
Monash Freeway : Berwick. start of freeway
Princes Highway : Berwick bi-directional
Clyde Road : Berwick bi-directional
Princes Highway Link Road : Beaconsfield eastbound exit, westbound entry
Cardinia Road: Officer bi-directional
McGregor Road: Pakenham eastbound exit, westbound entry
Koo Wee Rup Road : Pakenham bi-directional
Princes Highway / Nar Nar Goon Road : Nar Nar Goon bi-directional
Snell Road: Nar Nar Goon at-grade intersection
Fogarty Road: Tynong at-grade intersection
Tynong North Road / Tynong Road: Tynong at-grade intersection
Tonimbuk Road: Bunyip at-grade intersection
Wimpole Road: Bunyip at-grade intersection
Abeckett Road: Bunyip at-grade intersection
Princes Way: Longwarry North eastbound exit only
Sand Road : Longwarry North at-grade intersection
Drouin-Warragul Road (Princes Way) : Longwarry North bi-directional
Drouin-Warragul Road (Princes Way) / : Drouin eastbound exit; westbound entry
Warragul-Korumburra Road : Warragul bi-directional
Bloomfield Road / Nilma-Bona Vista Road: Nilma bi-directional
East-West Road: Darnum bi-directional
Little Moe River Road: Yarragon at-grade railway intersection
Seven Mile Road / Trafalgar-Thorpdale Road : Trafalgar at-grade railway intersection
Moe-Glengarry Road : Moe South eastbound exit; eastbound entry
Llyod Street Link Road: Moe South westbound exit; westbound entry
John Field Drive: Moe bi-directional
Morwell-Yallourn Road (Princes Highway) : Hernes Oak bi-directional
Strzelecki Highway : Morwell bi-directional
Monash Way: Morwell bi-directional
Morwell-Traralgon Road : Traralgon westbound exit; eastbound entry
The M1 continues on as Princes Highway.
New Sections
Pakenham bypass
The Pakenham Bypass was the final missing link of a continuous freeway from Melbourne to Gippsland in the East of Victoria. Federal and State Governments jointly funded construction of the bypass at a cost of $242 million which commenced in April 2005 and was completed on December 1 2007.The 24km freeway which runs from Beaconsfield to Nar Nar Goon bypasses the townships of Pakenham and Officer and provides an important link between Gippsland and Melbourne.
Towns linked by the Princes Freeway include:
Pakenham
Warragul
Trafalgar
Moe
Morwell
Geelong Ring Road
The Federal and State Government announced the construction of a new bypass extending 23 kilometres along Geelong's western outskirts from the Princes Freeway in Corio to the Princes Highway in Waurn Ponds. Drivers using the Bypass between Corio and Waurn Ponds will avoid up to 29 sets of traffic lights, with a travel time at freeway speeds of less than 15 minutes compared with the current 25 - 60 minute trip through Geelong.
The Federal Government allocated $186 million in funding with the State Government providing the remainder, giving a total of $380 million. Construction works for Section 1, between Corio and Bell Post Hill commenced in February 2006. Contracts for Section 2, between Hamlyn Heights and Fyansford, commenced in September 2006 and construction of Section 3, between Fyansford and Waurn Ponds, commenced in November 2007. All 3 stages are scheduled for completion in late 2009.
Traralgon Bypass
Planning for a bypass of Traralgon commenced in 2004 with public hearings being held on route options. It is expected that a bypass won't be needed for many years, as the volume of bypassable traffic on the Princes Highway in Traralgon is relatively low at present,
Further Information
Get more info on 'Princes Freeway'.
|
External Link Exchanges
Do you know how hard it is to get a link from a large encyclopaedia? Well we're different and will prove it. To get a link from us just add the following HTML to your site on a relevant page:
<a href="http://princes_freeway.totallyexplained.com">Princes Freeway Totally Explained</a>
Then simply click through this link from your web page. Our crawlers will verify your link, extract the title of your web page and instantly add a link back to it. If you like you can remove the words Totally Explained and embed the link in article text.
As long as your link remains in place, we'll keep our link to you right here. Please play fair - our crawlers are watching. Your site must be closely related to this one's topic. Any kind of spamming, dubious practises or removing the link will result in your link from us being dropped and, potentially, your whole site being banned. |
