Brand Highway

Brand Highway Western Australia
Map of Brand Highway, highlighted in red, and surrounding road network between Perth and Geraldton
General information
Type	Highway
Length	367.98 km (229 mi)[1]
Opened	4 April 1975
Route number(s)	National Route 1
Major junctions
South end	Great Northern Highway (National Highway 95 / National Route 1), Muchea
	Indian Ocean Drive (State Route 60) Midlands Road (State Route 116)
North end	North West Coastal Highway (National Route 1), Geraldton
Location(s)
Major settlements	Cataby, Badgingarra, Eneabba, Dongara
Highway system
Highways in Australia National Highway • Freeways in Australia Highways in Western Australia

Brand Highway is a 370-kilometre (230 mi) main highway linking the northern outskirts of Perth, the capital of Western Australia, to the port city of Geraldton in Western Australia's Mid West region. Together with North West Coastal Highway, it forms part of the Western Australian coastal link to the Northern Territory. The highway is a part of Australia's Highway 1, and is for the most part a single carriageway with one lane in each direction.^[2]

The highway was completed in 1975 and opened in 1976 by then-Premier Charles Court, who named it in honour of former premier Sir David Brand. It replaced the old alignment from Dongara to Perth (Midlands Road).

Route description

Brand Highway begins in Muchea, branching off from Great Northern Highway along with National Route 1. The highway passes through agricultural areas, travelling through or near the towns of Gingin, Badgingarra (and Badgingarra National Park), Cataby, Eneabba, Dongara, and Greenough. The highway ends after 370 kilometres (230 mi) at the city of Geraldton. National Route 1, and traffic travelling to areas further north of here, continue along North West Coastal Highway towards Port Hedland. For the last 5 kilometres (3.1 mi) of its length, Brand Highway serves as the main road for the southern suburbs of Geraldton, including Wandina, Tarcoola Beach, Mount Tarcoola and Mahomets Flats.^[2]

Main Roads Western Australia monitors traffic volume across the state's road network, including various locations along Brand Highway.^[3]:3 In the 2012/13 financial year, the recorded traffic volumes ranged from 15,400 vehicles per day north of Olive Street, near Geraldton, down to 1470 south of Indian Ocean Drive. The highest percentage of heavy vehicles was 36.0% south of Airfield Road, the access road to RAAF Gingin.^{[3]:67, 90} Reports commissioned by the Royal Automobile Club of Western Australia (RAC) in 2006 and 2008 gave the highway a three-star safety rating out of five. The overall highway network was generally rated as three-star or four-star, with around 10% in 2006 and 5% in 2008 receiving a two-star rating.^[4][5]

History

Brand Highway began as part of a network of roads between Dongara and Gingin, as a result of increased development in the area. Early surveying of the road, in the 1950s, was undertaken from within a light aircraft flying over the area. This was one of the first times in Western Australia that this technique was used. Wide road reserves, up to 200 metres (660 ft) in width, were acquired from crown land and pastoral leases. This allowed native wildflowers to survive and flourish on public land, providing aesthetically pleasing and interesting views to reduce road hypnosis and driver fatigue. The road would also be made safer by removing natural roadside obstacles, and replacing them with shrubs and more wildflowers.^[6]:255–57

Construction on roads that would eventually be part of the Brand Highway began in 1959. Various segments were completed as the need arose, until in 1975, there was a new link between Perth and Geraldton. The route reduced the distance between the cities by 78 kilometres (48 mi), and had a total cost of $4.2 million. It was officially opened on 4 April 1975 by the Minister for Transport, Ray O'Connor at Eneabba.^[6]:257 One year later, the road was named Brand Highway after Sir David Brand,^[6]:257 who was Premier of Western Australia from 1959 to 1971 and also held the local electorate of Greenough from 1945 to 1975.^[7] The change of name from Geraldton Highway to Brand Highway was gazetted on 12 March 1976.^[8] Then-premier Charles Court officiated a ceremony held on 30 April 1976 at a tourist information bay in Dongoara,^[6]:257–58 where a plaque was unveiled commemorating the naming of the highway.^[7]

• 

  Distances to towns on or near the highway, from Muchea

• 

  View east near Moreton Terrace, Dongara

• 

  Badgingarra Roadhouse is located just off the highway

• 

  View south near Warradarge, 2014.

Major intersections

LGA	Location	km[1]	mi	Destinations[9][10]	Notes
Chittering	Muchea	0.00	0.00	Great Northern Highway (National Highway 95 / National Route 1 south) / Muchea East Road – Perth, New Norcia, Moora, Meekatharra	Southern terminus at traffic lights: continues east as Muchea East Road
Gingin	Breera	22.17	13.78	Cockram Road – Gingin
	Granville	31.47	19.55	Gingin Brook Road – Yanchep, Lancelin
		31.92	19.83	Dewar Road – Gingin, Bindoon
	Red Gully	74.43	46.25	Mogumber Road West – Mogumber
		74.54	46.32	Orange Springs Road – Ledge Point, Lancelin
Dandaragan	Regans Ford	77.20	47.97	Dandaragan Road – Dandaragan
	Mimegarra	103.90	64.56	Mimegarra Road west – Wedge Island
	Cataby	108.72	67.56	Cataby Road – Dandaragan
	Badgingarra	138.91	86.31	Bibby Road – Cervantes, Nambung National Park (The Pinnacles)
		151.64	94.22	North West Road – Badgingarra, Moora
	Boothendarra – Hill River boundary	174.90	108.68	Jurien Road – Jurien Bay
Coorow	Warradarge	195.42– 195.66	121.43– 121.58	Coorow–Green Head Road – Green Head, Leeman, Coorow	Staggered T junctions
Carnamah	Eneabba	223.34	138.78	Eneabba–Coolimba Road – Leeman
		225.07	139.85	Eneabba–Three Springs Road – Three Springs, Carnamah
Irwin	Arrowsmith	273.73	170.09	Indian Ocean Drive (State Route 60) – Jurien Bay
	Yardarino	290.78	180.68	Kailis Drive – Dongara, Port Denison, Dongara Eneabba Mingenew Health Service
		297.34	184.76	Midlands Road (State Route 116) east – Mingenew, Three Springs	T junction: northbound traffic turns west, southbound traffic turns south
	Dongara	304.35	189.11	Moreton Terrace – Dongara, Port Denison, Dongara Eneabba Mingenew Health Service
		305.15	189.61	Waldeck Street – Dongara, Port Denison
Greater Geraldton	Geraldton	367.87– 367.98	228.58– 228.65	North West Coastal Highway (National Route 1) east / Cathedral Avenue north / John Willcock Link west – Carnarvon, Mount Magnet, Geraldton Airport, Geraldton Regional and St John of God Geraldton hospitals, Geraldton Port	Northern terminus at diamond interchange: continues north as Cathedral Avenue
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also

• Highways in Australia
• List of highways in Western Australia

External links

Route map: Bing

• Media related to Brand Highway at Wikimedia Commons
• Brand Highway travel guide from Wikivoyage
• Main Roads Western Australia

Road infrastructure in Western Australia Freeways Graham Farmer Freeway Kwinana Freeway Mitchell Freeway Metropolitan highways Albany Highway Canning Highway Great Eastern Highway (Bypass) Leach Highway Reid Highway Roe Highway Stirling Highway Tonkin Highway Wanneroo Road West Coast Highway Highways and major roads Albany Highway Brand Highway Brockman Highway Brookton Highway Bussell Highway Coalfields Road Coolgardie–Esperance Highway Dampier Highway Derby Highway Eyre Highway Forrest Highway Geraldton–Mount Magnet Road Goldfields Highway Great Eastern Highway Great Northern Highway Great Southern Highway Indian Ocean Drive Mandjoogoordap Drive Muirs Highway North West Coastal Highway Old Coast Road South Coast Highway South Western Highway Vasse Highway Victoria Highway Outback tracks Anne Beadell Highway Buntine Highway Canning Stock Route Cape Leveque Road Connie Sue Highway Duncan Road Gary Highway Gary Junction Road Gibb River Road Great Central Road Gunbarrel Highway Kalumburu Road Sandy Blight Junction Road Talawana Track Tanami Road

Road routes in Western Australia National Route 1 North West Coastal Highway Brand Highway Great Northern Highway Morrison Road Great Eastern Highway East Street James Street Johnson Street Canning Highway Kwinana Freeway Leach Highway Stock Road Rockingham Road Patterson Road Ennis Avenue Mandurah Road Old Coast Road Forrest Highway Robertson Drive South Western Highway South Coast Highway Chester Pass Road Harbour Road Norseman Road Coolgardie–Esperance Highway National Highways 1 94 95 National Routes 1 Alt 94 State Routes 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 10 12 13 14 18 19 20 21 22 26 27 30 Alt 30 31 36 40 41 50 51 52 53 55 56 60 61 64 65 66 71 72 75 76 77 78 81 82 83 84 85 87 102 104 107 115 116 120 123 136 138 Tourist Drives 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 250 251 252 254 255 256 257 258 259 350 351 352 353 354 355 356 357 358 359 360 List of road routes in Western Australia

References