Southern Expressway

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Southern Expressway
General direction	North - South
From	Main South Road, Darlington, Adelaide
To	Main South Road, Old Noarlunga, Adelaide
Established	1997
Major Junctions	Marion Road Panalatinga Road Sherriffs Road Beach Road

The Southern Expressway is the world's longest reversible one way freeway. Originally proposed as 'Noarlunga Freeway', it was built as a corridor to relieve heavy traffic from the major arterial, Main South Road in Adelaide's south. The expressway was built in two stages—the first completed in late 1997 and the second was completed in 2001. The total cost of the arterial was A$76.5m, and it is 21 km in total length. There is a provision for the future duplication of the expressway when the time arises [1]. Main South Road provides both the start and finish. There are exits at Marion Road, Panalatinga Road, Sherriffs Road and Beach Road. The Southern Expressway is signed as M2.

Construction of the Expressway also included the Adelaide Southern Veloway for the exclusive use of cyclists that runs alongside the Southern Expressway for a distance of 7 km — from Marion/Main South Road to the Panalatinga Tunnel. South of the Panalatinga Tunnel, the bikeway becomes a shared track for the remaining 12 km of the Southern Expressway. The Southern Expressway crosses over the Coast to Vines rail trail at both Panalatinga Road and at the expressways' Southern end.

[edit] Operation

Main South Road at the northern end of the Expressway (looking south), closed to south-bound traffic.

The Southern Expressway is open approximately 22.5 hours per day - a one-way freeway operating for over 11 hours in each direction. The northbound direction occurs on weekday mornings and weekend evenings, the southbound direction occurs on weekday evenings and weekend mornings. It is closed between approximately 12:40am - 1:10am and 12:30pm - 1:30pm except for Saturday and Monday mornings when the direction remains unchanged. The official closing times given by Transport SA are between 12:30am - 2:00am and 12:30pm - 2:00pm. During each closure all road signs, lights and boom gates switch, and the road is inspected by a tow truck contractor for debris or car breakdowns.

[edit] History

The Adelaide Southern Veloway

The Southern Expressway is the southern part of a north-south freeway originally conceptualised under the Metropolitan Adelaide Transport Study (MATS), completed in 1965. The original proposal was for a freeway bypassing the city that ran from Dry Creek to Old Noarlunga [2]. The MATS plan proved unpopular, and in 1971 all further highway construction in Adelaide was postponed for a period of ten years. In 1983 plans for the freeway north of Darlington were abandoned, and the land that had been set aside was progressively sold off.

In 1984 the state government announced plans to develop a "third arterial road" for the south. In 1987 the project was split into two phases, the first the upgrading of Main South Road and Marion Road around the Darlington area, and the second a new road from Darlington to Reynella. Phase one was completed in 1994 with the widening of Main South Road to eight lanes between Ayliffes Road and Seacombe Road, and the widening of Marion Road to six lanes between Main South Road and Sturt Road.

Phase 2 became the "Southern Expressway", which was to be constructed in two stages: the first from Darlington to Reynella, and the second from Reynella to Old Noarlunga. It was developed as a one-way reversible road with future duplication provided for in the roadworks base, to be constructed when the need arose. It utilised the remaining "Noarlunga Freeway" reservation, except for the northernmost kilometre where a new route through O'Halloran Hill was chosen to provide high quality links with Marion and Main South Roads without interfering with existing infrastructure at Sturt.

Construction of the Southern Expressway commenced in July 1995 and the first stage was opened to traffic on 17 December 1997. Construction commenced on the second stage in February 1999 and was opened to traffic on 9 September 2001.

Although a boon to residents living a substantial distance south of the CBD, the expressway itself does not commence until some 15km south of the CBD. This fact, combined with its one-way operation, design compromises and the fact that it bypasses large sections of existing freeway-class road, have led many to question its benefit.

In 2007 John Howard pledged $100m towards the widening of the southern expressway in his unsuccessful reelection bid. [3]

[edit] Exits and Intersections

Southern Expressway
Southbound exits	Distance from South Rd Old Noarlunga (km)	Distance from South Rd Bedford Park (km)	Northbound exits
Start Southern Expressway continues from South Road	21	0	Merges with South Road continues as South Road to Adelaide
no exit			City via Main South Rd Main South Road
no exit	20.5	0.5	City via Marion Rd Marion Road
Reynella Woodcroft Panalatinga Road Main South Road	15.4	5.6	no exit
Lonsdale Sherrifs Road	11.1	9.9	Lonsdale Sherrifs Road
Noarlunga Centre Christie Downs Beach Road	6.7	14.3	Noarlunga Centre Christie Downs Beach Road
Old Noarlunga Victor Harbor at-grade intersection Main South Road	0	21	no exit
Merges with Main South Road continues as Main South Road to Cape Jervis and Victor Harbor Road to Victor Harbor			Start Southern Expressway continues from Main South Road

[edit] Bridges

Southern Expressway over the Field River in Reynella

The 15 bridges over the Southern Expressway from north to south are:

The Southern Expressway has five underpasses:

[edit] See also

• Highways in Australia
• List of highways in South Australia

[edit] References

• Adelaide's Freeways - A History from MATS to the Port River Expressway

[edit] External links

• Southern Expressway Traffic Management System Transport SA

v • d • e Road Infrastructure in Adelaide Highways/Freeways: Adelaide-Crafers Highway · Port River Expressway · Princes Highway · South Eastern Freeway · Southern Expressway Major Roads: Anzac Highway · Burbridge Road · Cross Road · Daws Road · Fullarton Road · Glen Osmond Road · Goodwood Road · Grand Junction Road · Greenhill Road · Kensington Road · Main North Road · Port Road · Port Wakefield Road · Portrush Road · Salisbury Highway · Sir Donald Bradman Drive · South Road · Tapleys Hill Road · Torrens Road · Victoria Road Proposed: Northern Expressway