New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

, Highway 1 is a long route that crosses the state, from the

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

border near

Tweed Heads Tweed Heads is a coastal city at the mouth of the Tweed River in the Northern Rivers region of the state of New South Wales, Australia. Tweed Heads is the northernmost town in New South Wales, and is located in the Tweed Shire local government ...

to the

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...

border near Timbillica. It provides the main coastal route between and via . Highway 1 continues around the rest of Australia, joining all mainland state capitals, and connecting major centres in

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

Highway 1 is often associated with summer road excursions for people of New South Wales since the whole route passes very near to the ocean. Parts of the route are also busy intercity or commuter routes. While the route is defined by its designation of "1", with today's alphanumeric route numbering system the route consists of eight sections, alternating between the M1 designation (for motorway grade sections) and the A1 designation (for other sections).

History

Highway 1 was created as part of the National Route Numbering system, adopted in 1955. The route was compiled from an existing network of state and

local Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States Arts, entertainment, and media * ''Local'' (comics), a limited series comic book by Bria ...

roads and tracks.

Route numbering

When Highway 1 was declared in 1955, the entire route carried the National Route 1 shield. In 1974, the Sydney-Newcastle Freeway section was declared part of the National Highway, and the route marker was subsequently updated to National Highway 1 for this section In 1993, the route numbering was further complicated with the introduction of the

Metroad Metroads were the primary road routes serving the Sydney and Brisbane metropolitan areas from the 1990s to the early 2010s. The Metroads formed a network of radial and circumferential routes throughout the cities, simplifying navigation. Metroads ...

numbering system within the metro area. The section of highway 1 between and was proclaimed Metroad 1. In 2013, alphanumeric route numbering was introduced to New South Wales, and all sections of Highway 1 were changed to carry either the M1 or A1 designation, depending on the grade of the road. As of 2013, large sections of the Pacific Highway are actually of motorway standard, despite still carrying the A1 designation. The government has explained this is to avoid frequent changes in route designation, with plans to update the designation to M1 over time as large sections of road are brought to motorway standard.

Route description

Highway 1 travels multiple named roads on its journey from the

to the Victoria, Australia, Victorian border: * Pacific Motorway (

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

to ) */ Pacific Highway ( to ) *

New England Highway New England Highway is an long highway in Australia running from Yarraman, Queensland, Yarraman, north of Toowoomba, Queensland, at its northern end to Hexham, New South Wales, Hexham at Newcastle, New South Wales, Newcastle, New South Wales, ...

( to ) * John Renshaw Drive () * Pacific Motorway ( to ) * Pacific Highway ( to ) * Gore Hill Freeway ( to ) *

Warringah Freeway Warringah Freeway is a divided freeway in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia that is part of the Sydney Orbital Network. The primary function of the freeway is to provide an alternative high-grade route from the Sydney Harbour Tunnel and B ...

( to ) *

Sydney Harbour Tunnel The Sydney Harbour Tunnel is a twin-tube road tunnel in Sydney, Australia. The tunnel was completed and opened to traffic in August 1992 to provide a second vehicular crossing of Sydney Harbour to alleviate congestion on the Sydney Harbour Brid ...

( to ) *

Cahill Expressway Cahill Expressway is an urban freeway in Sydney and was the first freeway constructed in Australia, with the first section, from the Bradfield Highway to Conservatorium Place being opened to traffic in March 1958. It links the southern end of ...

( to ) *

Eastern Distributor The Eastern Distributor is a motorway in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Part of the M1 and the Sydney Orbital Network, the motorway links the Sydney central business district with the south-east and Sydney Airport. The Eastern Distribut ...

( to ) *

Southern Cross Drive Southern Cross Drive is a dual carriage untolled motorway in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Part of the M1 and Sydney Orbital Network, the road, a freeway that opened in 1969, links South Dowling Street (and Eastern Distributor just b ...

( to ) *

General Holmes Drive General Holmes Drive is a major divided road located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The road forms part of the M1, the A1, the Sydney Orbital Network, and the Australian Highway 1 network. Initially built in 1919 as a two-lane road ...

( to ) *

( to ) * The Grand Parade ( to ) * President Avenue ( to ) *

Princes Highway Princes Highway is a major road in Australia, extending from Sydney via Melbourne to Adelaide through the states of New South Wales, Victoria (Australia), Victoria and South Australia. It has a length of (along Highway 1) or via the former ...

( to ) * Acacia Road ( to ) *

( to ) *

Princes Motorway Princes Motorway is a predominantly dual carriage untolled motorway that links Sydney to Wollongong and further south through the Illawarra region to . Part of the Australian Highway 1 network, the motorway is designated route M1. The m ...

( to ) *

( to Timbillica)

Major intersections

Highway 1 intersects the following major roads in New South Wales (North to South): *

Bruxner Highway Bruxner Highway, and its former western alignment as Bruxner Way, are a state highway and rural road respectively, located in New South Wales, Australia. The route forms an east–west link across the Northern Tablelands in northern New South ...

* Big River Way *

Oxley Highway Oxley Highway is a rural highway in New South Wales, Australia, linking Nevertire, Gilgandra, Coonabarabran, Tamworth, and Walcha to Port Macquarie, on the coast of the Tasman Sea. It was named to commemorate John Oxley, the first European t ...

Hunter Expressway The Hunter Expressway is a long controlled-access highway in New South Wales, Australia. It was previously known as the F3 to Branxton link or Kurri Kurri Corridor during the planning stage. It has two lanes in each direction, running generally ...

Newcastle Link Road Newcastle Link Road is a limited-access road in New South Wales linking the interchange of Pacific Motorway and Hunter Expressway at Cameron Park, to Wallsend in western Newcastle. It is designated part of route A15. Route Newcastle Link Ro ...

Central Coast Highway Central Coast Highway is a highway through the Central Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. It connects Pacific Motorway ( M1) at Kariong with Pacific Highway (A43) at Doyalson. The highway was named after the region it goes through ...

* Mona Vale Road/Ryde Road (A3) *

Military Road A military road is a type of road built by an armed force A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily Weapon, armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and ma ...

(A8) * Bradfield Highway (A4) * M5 East Freeway (M5) *

King Georges Road King Georges Road is a major suburban arterial road through south-western Sydney, Australia. It is a constituent part of the A3 route. Route King Georges Road commences at the intersection of Wiley Avenue and Punchbowl Road in Wiley Park ...

(A3) *

Heathcote Road Heathcote Road is a major arterial road in the south of Sydney, Australia. It plays a major role in the servicing of traffic travelling between the Illawarra and Western Sydney, and its eastern end is a constituent part of the A6 route. Rout ...

(A6) *

Illawarra Highway Illawarra Highway is a short state highway in New South Wales, Australia. It connects Wollongong to the Southern Highlands and links Princes Highway and Hume Highway. It is named after the geographical area it crosses, the Illawarra region. ...

(A48) * Kings Highway *

Snowy Mountains Highway Snowy Mountains Highway is a state highway located in New South Wales, Australia. Its two sections connect the New South Wales South Coast to the Monaro region, and the Monaro to the South Western Slopes via the Snowy Mountains. The higher ...

History

Route numbering

Route description

Major intersections

References

See also