Koo Wee Rup Bypass is a short road in
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
,
Australia, linking Healesville-Koo Wee Rup Road more directly to
South Gippsland Highway
The South Gippsland Highway is a partially divided highway in Victoria, Australia which connects the city of Melbourne with the South Gippsland region of Victoria, ending in the town of Sale. The highway begins at Lonsdale Street (Princes Hi ...
at
Koo Wee Rup
Koo Wee Rup is a town and satellite suburb in Victoria, Australia, 63 km south-east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the Shire of Cardinia local government area. Built on former marshland now converted to market ...
, subsequently bypassing Koo Wee Rup.
Route
Koo Wee Rup Bypass begins at the intersection with Healesville-Koo Wee Rup Road and Manks Road in northern Koo Wee Rup and runs south as a dual-lane, single-carriageway road to the west of the town, over the
Bunyip River
The Bunyip River is a perennial river of the Western Port catchment, located in the West Gippsland region of the Australian state of Victoria.
Location and features
The Bunyip River rises below Mount Beenak, part of the southern portion of the ...
drains, to terminate at Rossiter Road shortly afterwards; the intersection with
South Gippsland Highway
The South Gippsland Highway is a partially divided highway in Victoria, Australia which connects the city of Melbourne with the South Gippsland region of Victoria, ending in the town of Sale. The highway begins at Lonsdale Street (Princes Hi ...
is 500 metres away. It acts to remove through traffic, particularly heavy vehicles, from the town centre.
History
In August 2013,
Lend Lease Engineering (formerly
Abigroup
Abigroup was an Australian construction company.
History
Abigroup was established as Graham Evans & Co in 1957 as a civil engineering company within New South Wales, being renamed Abignano in 1961. In 1981 it was listed on the Australian Securiti ...
) was awarded the contract to construct the bypass, including a new bridge spanning the Bunyip River drains. Construction finished in May 2015, six months ahead of schedule, for a cost of $66 million. It was opened to traffic on 15 May 2015.
The bypass is the first stage of a major upgrade of Healesville-Koo Wee Rup Road, ultimately to convert it to freeway standard between
South Gippsland Highway
The South Gippsland Highway is a partially divided highway in Victoria, Australia which connects the city of Melbourne with the South Gippsland region of Victoria, ending in the town of Sale. The highway begins at Lonsdale Street (Princes Hi ...
south of Koo Wee Rup and
Princes Freeway
Princes Freeway is a Australian freeway, divided into two sections, both located in Victoria, Australia. The freeway links Melbourne to Geelong in the west, and to Morwell in the east. It continues beyond these extremities as the Princes Hig ...
south of
Pakenham.
The next stage is the eventual duplication of the bypass, its linking to the South Gippsland Highway, and then the conversion of the road to Pakenham; more planning is required before any further progress is to be made.
Major intersections
Koo Wee Rup Bypass is entirely contained within the
Shire of Cardinia
The Shire of Cardinia is a local government area in Victoria, Australia, in the south-east of Melbourne between Western Port and the Yarra Ranges on the outskirts of Melbourne. It has an area of 1,283 square kilometres, and had a population of ...
local government area.
See also
References
{{Road infrastructure in Melbourne
Highways and freeways in Melbourne
Bypasses in Australia
Transport in the Shire of Cardinia