Midland Highway is a major rural highway linking major towns in
Victoria, beginning from
Geelong
Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...
and winding through country Victoria in a large arc through the cities of
Ballarat
Ballarat ( ) () is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 census, Ballarat had a population of 111,973, making it the third-largest urban inland city in Australia and the third-largest city in Victoria.
Within mo ...
,
Bendigo
Bendigo ( ) is an Australian city in north-central Victoria. The city is located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital.
As of 2022, Bendigo has a popula ...
and
Shepparton
Shepparton () (Yorta Yorta language, Yortayorta: ''Kanny-goopna'') is a city located on the floodplain of the Goulburn River (Victoria), Goulburn River in northern Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, approximately north-northeast of Mel ...
, eventually reaching
Mansfield
Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of the Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area and the second largest settlement in Nottinghamshire (following the city ...
at the foothills of the
Victorian Alps
The Victorian Alps, also known locally as the High Country, is a large mountain system in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria. Occupying the majority of eastern Victoria, it is the southwestern half of the Australian Alps (the othe ...
.
Midland Link Highway links Barjarg (on Midland Highway) and Maindample (on
Maroondah Highway),
bypassing Mansfield and reducing the journey from Benalla to
Alexandra
Alexandra () is a female given name of Greek origin. It is the first attested form of its variants, including Alexander (, ). Etymology, Etymologically, the name is a compound of the Greek verb (; meaning 'to defend') and (; genitive, GEN , ; ...
by .
Route
Midland Highway commences at the intersection of
Melbourne Road at
Geelong
Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...
, and heads in a north-westerly direction as a four lane, dual-carriageway road through the western suburbs of Geelong until it reaches the interchange with
Geelong Ring Road, where it narrows to a two-lane, single carriageway rural highway, continues north-east through
Meredith and turning north to the southern suburbs of
Ballarat
Ballarat ( ) () is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 census, Ballarat had a population of 111,973, making it the third-largest urban inland city in Australia and the third-largest city in Victoria.
Within mo ...
, where it widens again to a four-lane, dual-carriageway road through central Ballarat, until a short distance south of the interchange with
Western Freeway where the road narrows again to a two-lane, single carriageway. It continues in a north-eastly direction through
Daylesford and
Castlemaine, where it meets
Calder Freeway just outside
Harvourt and runs concurrent with it as a four-lane, dual-carriageway road until it reaches central
Bendigo
Bendigo ( ) is an Australian city in north-central Victoria. The city is located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital.
As of 2022, Bendigo has a popula ...
, when it narrows to a four-lane, single carriageway road and splits off to run north-east through Bendigo's suburbs of
Epsom
Epsom is a town in the borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain ...
and
Huntly
Huntly ( or ''Hunndaidh'') is a town in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, formerly known as Milton of Strathbogie or simply Strathbogie. It had a population of 4,460 in 2004 and is the site of Huntly Castle. Its neighbouring settlements include Keith ...
, where it narrows back to a two-lane rural highway. It meets
Northern Highway at
Elmore, and continues in an easterly direction where it meets
Goulburn Valley Highway in central
Shepparton
Shepparton () (Yorta Yorta language, Yortayorta: ''Kanny-goopna'') is a city located on the floodplain of the Goulburn River (Victoria), Goulburn River in northern Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, approximately north-northeast of Mel ...
, before heading in a south-easterly direction to
Benalla
Benalla
is a small city in the Hume (region), Hume region of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The town sits on the Broken River (Victoria), Broken River, about north east of the state capital Melbourne. As of the , the population wa ...
. It meets
Hume Freeway
The Hume Highway, including the sections now known as the Hume Freeway and the Hume Motorway, is one of Australia's major inter-city National Highway (Australia), national highways, running for between Melbourne in the southwest and Sydney in ...
at an interchange just south of the town, before continuing in a southerly direction. Midland Link Highway splits off at Barjang, where the highway continues in a south-easterly direction to eventually terminate at a roundabout in the town centre with
Maroondah Highway in
Mansfield
Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of the Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area and the second largest settlement in Nottinghamshire (following the city ...
.
History
The passing of the ''Country Roads Act of 1912'' through the
Parliament of Victoria
The Parliament of Victoria is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of Victoria (state), Victoria that follows a Westminster System, Westminster-derived parliamentary system. It consists of the Monarchy in Australia, King, represent ...
provided for the establishment of the
Country Roads Board
The Country Roads Board was a government authority responsible for the construction and maintenance of main roads in the state of Victoria, Australia between 1913 and 1983.
History
The Country Roads Board (CRB) was formed to take over respon ...
(later
VicRoads
VicRoads is a government joint venture in the state of Victoria, Australia. In the state, it is responsible for driver licensing and vehicle registration. It is owned and operated through a joint venture between the Victorian government an ...
) and their ability to declare Main Roads, taking responsibility for the management, construction and care of the state's major roads from local municipalities. Boolarra-Welshpool Road from
Boolarra via Wonyip to
Welshpool
Welshpool ( ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community in Powys, Wales, historically in the Historic counties of Wales, county of Montgomeryshire. The town is from the Wales–England border and low-lying on the River Severn. The c ...
, and Jeeralang West Road from
Morwell to
Hazelwood (and continuing south via
Jeeralang and Grand Ridge to Wonyip), were declared Main Roads on 1 December 1913;
Geelong-Ballarat Road was declared a Main Road from
Geelong
Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...
to
Lethbridge
Lethbridge ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. With a population of 106,550 in the 2023 Alberta municipal censuses, 2023 municipal census, Lethbridge became the fourth Alberta city to surpass 100,000 people. The nearby Canadian ...
on 16 March 1914,
and from Lethbridge through
Meredith to
Ballarat
Ballarat ( ) () is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 census, Ballarat had a population of 111,973, making it the third-largest urban inland city in Australia and the third-largest city in Victoria.
Within mo ...
on 21 June 1915;
Shepparton-(Mooroopna-)Tatura Road between
Shepparton
Shepparton () (Yorta Yorta language, Yortayorta: ''Kanny-goopna'') is a city located on the floodplain of the Goulburn River (Victoria), Goulburn River in northern Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, approximately north-northeast of Mel ...
through
Mooroopna
Mooroopna is a town located north of Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. It is on the banks of the Goulburn River (Victoria), Goulburn River opposite the larger town of Shepparton. The Midland Highway (Victoria), Midland Highw ...
to
Tatura
Tatura is a town in the Goulburn Valley region of Victoria, Australia, and is situated within the City of Greater Shepparton local government area, north of the state capital (Melbourne) and west of the regional centre of Shepparton, Victoria ...
and Shepparton-(Nalinga-)Benalla Road between Shepparton through Nalinga to
Benalla
Benalla
is a small city in the Hume (region), Hume region of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The town sits on the Broken River (Victoria), Broken River, about north east of the state capital Melbourne. As of the , the population wa ...
were declared Main Roads on 17 March 1915;
Castlemaine-(Creswick-)Ballarat Road between Ballarat and
Creswick
Creswick is a town in west-central Victoria, Australia, Victoria, Australia, 18 kilometres north of Ballarat, Victoria, Ballarat and 122 kilometres northwest of Melbourne, in the Shire of Hepburn. It is 430 metres above sea level. At the ...
(and continuing north to
Newstead), and Daylesford-Ballarat Road between
Daylesford and
Newlyn
Newlyn () is a seaside town and fishing port in south-west Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.Ordnance Survey: Landranger map sheet 203 ''Land's End'' It is the largest fishing port in England.
Newlyn lies on the shore of Mount's Bay and for ...
] (and continuing south to
Ballarat East, Victoria, Ballarat East, were declared Main Roads on 20 September 1915;
Castlemaine-Daylesford Road was declared a Main Road, between
Castlemaine and
Guildford
Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, England, around south-west of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The nam ...
on 28 June 1915,
and between Guildford and Daylesford on 20 September 1915;
and Benalla-Mansfield Road between Benalla and Barjang was declared a Main Road on 28 June 1915.
The passing of the ''Highways and Vehicles Act of 1924''
''An Act to make further provision with respect to Highways and Country Roads Motor Cars and Traction Engines and for other purposes''
State of Victoria, 30 December 1924 provided for the declaration of State Highways, roads two-thirds financed by the State government through the Country Roads Board. Midland Highway was declared a State Highway in 1933, cobbled together from roads between Geelong
Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...
and Ballarat
Ballarat ( ) () is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 census, Ballarat had a population of 111,973, making it the third-largest urban inland city in Australia and the third-largest city in Victoria.
Within mo ...
, between Shepparton
Shepparton () (Yorta Yorta language, Yortayorta: ''Kanny-goopna'') is a city located on the floodplain of the Goulburn River (Victoria), Goulburn River in northern Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, approximately north-northeast of Mel ...
and Benalla
Benalla
is a small city in the Hume (region), Hume region of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. The town sits on the Broken River (Victoria), Broken River, about north east of the state capital Melbourne. As of the , the population wa ...
, and between Benalla to the turn-off-road to Maindample in Barjang (for a total of 114 miles), subsuming the original declarations of Geelong-Ballarat Road, Shepparton-Benalla Road and Benalla-Mansfield Road as Main Roads. In the 1947/48 financial year, another section from Shepparton
Shepparton () (Yorta Yorta language, Yortayorta: ''Kanny-goopna'') is a city located on the floodplain of the Goulburn River (Victoria), Goulburn River in northern Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, approximately north-northeast of Mel ...
via Stanhope to Elmore was added, subsuming the original declaration of Shepparton-Tatura Road and also along the former Shepparton–Elmore Road; with the realignment of Northern Highway south of Elmore running to Kilmore instead of to Bendigo
Bendigo ( ) is an Australian city in north-central Victoria. The city is located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital.
As of 2022, Bendigo has a popula ...
declared at the same time, the previous alignment of Northern Highway between Elmore and Bendigo was also added to Midland Highway. In the 1959/60 financial year, the last section from Ballarat
Ballarat ( ) () is a city in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 census, Ballarat had a population of 111,973, making it the third-largest urban inland city in Australia and the third-largest city in Victoria.
Within mo ...
via Creswick
Creswick is a town in west-central Victoria, Australia, Victoria, Australia, 18 kilometres north of Ballarat, Victoria, Ballarat and 122 kilometres northwest of Melbourne, in the Shire of Hepburn. It is 430 metres above sea level. At the ...
and Daylesford to Castlemaine was added, subsuming the original declaration of Castlemaine-Daylesford Road, Castlemaine-Creswick-Ballarat Road (between Creswick and Ballarat) and Daylesford-Ballarat (between Daylesford and Newlyn) as Main Roads, and along the former Creswick–Daylesford Road. With the deviation of Calder Highway
Calder Highway is a rural highway in Australia, linking Mildura and the Victoria/New South Wales border to Bendigo, in North Central Victoria. South of Bendigo, where the former highway has been upgraded to freeway-standard, Calder Freeway li ...
past Castlemaine declared at the same time, the previous alignment of Calder Highway between Castlemaine and Harcourt was also added to Midland Highway. With the highway running concurrent with Calder Highway between Harcourt and Bendigo, Midland Highway had finally achieved its present-day alignment at this stage. Midland Link Highway was later declared on 9 May 1983 along the former Maindample–Benalla Road, to act as a western bypass of Mansfield.
Midland Highway also had a separate, southern section through South Gippsland, declared in 1939, from Morwell through Boolarra to Welshpool
Welshpool ( ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community in Powys, Wales, historically in the Historic counties of Wales, county of Montgomeryshire. The town is from the Wales–England border and low-lying on the River Severn. The c ...
(with the intention to be linked up in the future with the existing highway at Mansfield), subsuming the original declarations of Boolarra-Welshpool Road and Jeeralang West Road (between Morwell and Hazelwood) as Main Roads; it appears to have been extended to Port Welshpool by 1972, and a 9.6 km portion of highway through Yinnar was declared Midland Freeway in 1975, despite being only a single-carriageway road. The highway was re-routed with a 20 km deviation from south of Yinnar via Churchill to Princes Highway in eastern Morwell in 1976; the former alignment is now known as Yinnar Road and Brodribb Road (the latter signed route C468 in 1998). This section, eventually 88 km long, was eventually stripped of both freeway and State Highway status: from south of Grand Ridge Road to Port Welshpool in August 1990, and from north of Grand Ridge Road to Morwell in September 1990 – replaced as a north–south route through South Gippsland by the recently declared Strzelecki and Hyland Highways – and renamed into its current constituent parts (Monash Way, Budgeree Road, Woorarra Road and Port Welshpool Road), with the section between Wonyip and Albert River Road incorporated back into the Grand Ridge Road.
The alignment of the highway through southern Ballarat was altered in May 1990: previously running north through Buninyong
Buninyong is a town 11 km from Ballarat in Victoria, Australia. The town is on the Midland Highway, south of Ballarat on the road to Geelong.
Buninyong was proclaimed a town on 27 June 1851 on the same day as Winchelsea, Portarlington, ...
along Warrenheip Street, Geelong Road, Main Road and along Western Highway to meet its northern half at Doveton Street North, it was re-aligned to its current route running west through Buninyong along Buninyong-Sebastopol Road via Sebastopol and then along Skipton Street and Doveton Street South (the former alignment of Glenelg Highway
Glenelg Highway is a rural highway in south-eastern Australia, linking the major regional centres of Mount Gambier in south-eastern South Australia with Ballarat in western Victoria.
Route
Glenelg Highway commences at the intersection with Pri ...
, truncated back to Sebastopol at the same time) to meet its northern half directly at Sturt Street; the former alignment is now known as Ballarat-Buninyong Road (signed route C294 in 1998).
Midland Highway was signed as State Route 149 between Geelong and Benalla, State Route 153 between Benalla and Barjang, Alternative State Route 153 between Barjang and Mansfield, and State Route 190 between Morwell and Port Welshpool in 1986; with Victoria's conversion to the newer alphanumeric system in the late 1990s, this was replaced by route A300 between Geelong and Benalla, route B300 between Benalla and Barjang, and route C518 between Barjang and Mansfield; despite highway status being removed between Morwell and Port Welshpool, the former highway alignment continued to be signed as State Route 190 until the change-over to the new alphanumeric system, when all traces of the former route were removed. Midland Link Highway was signed State Route 153 between Barjang and Maindample in 1986, and was later replaced by route B300.
The passing of the ''Road Management Act 2004'' granted the responsibility of overall management and development of Victoria's major arterial roads to VicRoads
VicRoads is a government joint venture in the state of Victoria, Australia. In the state, it is responsible for driver licensing and vehicle registration. It is owned and operated through a joint venture between the Victorian government an ...
: in 2004, VicRoads re-declared Midland Link Highway (Arterial #6030) from Midland Highway in Barjang to Maroondah Highway in Maindample, and in 2004 re-declared Midland Highway (Arterial #6590) to begin at Corio-Waurn Ponds Road (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 ...
) in Geelong
Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung language, Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in Victoria, Australia, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River (Victo ...
and end at Maroondah Highway in Mansfield
Mansfield is a market town and the administrative centre of the Mansfield District in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the largest town in the wider Mansfield Urban Area and the second largest settlement in Nottinghamshire (following the city ...
.
Major intersections and towns
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 Victoria
References
{{Road infrastructure in Victoria
Highways in Australia
Highways in Victoria (state)
Transport in Geelong
Transport in Barwon South West (region)