Melba Highway

Melba Highway
Formerly
Length 65 km (40 mi)
Direction North-South
From Goulburn Valley Highway, Yea, Victoria
via Glenburn, Dixons Creek, Yarra Glen, Yering
To Maroondah Highway, Coldstream, Victoria
Major junctions for full list see major intersections

The Melba Highway connects the outer eastern suburb of Coldstream, near Lilydale, and the town of Yea, in Victoria's Central Highlands on the Goulburn Valley Highway.

Contents

Route

The highway passes through the alluvial plains of the Yarra River and the rich Yarra Valley vineyards near Yarra Glen. At Yarra Glen, the road diverts from the main town street (Bell Street) and follows a recently completed bypass of the township. After rejoining the main highway north of Yarra Glen, the road rises up a steep grade between Dixons Creek and Glenburn to the top of the Great Dividing Range at a road junction that links the highway with the nearby towns of Kinglake and Toolangi, a former home of Australian author C. J. Dennis.

From there, the road passes through forest and open agricultural land before reaching Yea, a small pastoral town.

Speed Limit

Coldstream - Yarra Glen 100 km/h

Yarra Glen 50 km/h

Yarra Glen - Glenburn 100 km/h

Glenburn 80 km/h

Glenburn-Yea 100 km/h

Yea 60 km/h

History

The road is named after Dame Nellie Melba, a famed Australian opera singer of the early 20th century whose former country estate lies at the southern end of the highway, at the junction of the Melba and Maroondah highways in Coldstream.

The road is within the Shire of Yarra Ranges and Shire of Murrindindi local government areas.

In addition, the recently completed Yarra Glen bypass now diverts trucks and other through vehicles onto the new road, having been opened in May 2010. Works are continuing at the Bell Street/Melba Highway roundabout (at the Yarra Valley Tourist rail crossing) which is expected to completed by mid 2011.[1]

Major intersections and towns

Melba Highway
Northbound Distance to
Yea
(km)
Distance to
Melbourne
(km)
Southbound
T-Intersection (clockwise from highway)
Goulburn Valley Highway to Seymour and Shepparton
Goulburn Valley Highway to Alexandra and Mansfield
End Melba Highway 0 111 Start Melba Highway
Yea
Kinglake, Healesville
Healesville-Kinglake Road
40 72 Healesville, Kinglake
Healesville-Kinglake Road
Yarra Glen
Yea Road
53 58 Yarra Glen, Eltham
Yea Road
continues as 55 56 Healesville
Healesville-Yarra Glen Road
Healesville
Healesville-Yarra Glen Road
duplexes with
duplexes with 57 54 Yarra Glen, Eltham
Bell Street
Yarra Glen, Eltham
Bell Street
continues as
YARRA VALLEY TOURIST RAIL LINE
YARRA VALLEY TOURIST RAIL LINE
YARRA RIVER 57.5 53.5 YARRA RIVER
Start Melba Highway 65 47 End Melba Highway
Traffic Lights (clockwise from highway)
Maroondah Highway to Healesville and Alexandra
Maroondah Highway to Lilydale and Melbourne

See also

References

  1. ^ Yarra Glen Bypass, VicRoads Site. Retrieved on 15 March 2011.