|
|
|
|
|
| M2 A2 | Northern Expressway, Northern Connector, North-South Motorway, South Road, Main South Road & Southern Expressway (M2 & A2) |
Statistics:
Route Numbering:
General Information:
Northern Expressway is a 4-lane motorway standard route linking Port Wakefield Rd (A1) with Gawler Bypass (A20). The interchanges and bridges along the expressway were all named after famous battles in which Australian forces were involved in, such as Long Tan, Kokoda, Tobruk, Kapyong and Hamel. In November 2013, one year after the death of South Australian author and journalist Max Fatchen, the Northern Expressway was dual named "Fatchen Northern Expressway" in his honour. 2 3
Developed as part of a continuous freeway grade road between Old Noarlunga and Nuriootpa known as the North–South Corridor, the Northern Connector links the North-South Motorway at Wingfield with the Northern Expressway at Waterloo Corner. Featuring 3-lanes in each direction, the design incorporates a reservation for a ARTC railway line routing down the middle between Dry Creek, South Australia and Taylors Road at Waterloo Corner. 4
Located in Adelaide's northern suburbs, the North-South Motorway services industrial, commercial and residential areas, part of which is an elevated dual carriageway that towers above a section South Road for 2.8 kilometres in a bid to separate local and through traffic, and was originally known as the South Road Superway. Ultimately it will be a part of a larger scale motorway standard route linking the far north and far south of Adelaide's metropolitan area.
The South Road Superway is supported by a total of 68 piers, made from concrete and the carriageway is made from 2203 segments cast in the purpose-built casting yard. 5
South Road and Main South Road have been major arterial routes in Adelaide for decades, and service industrial, residential and commercial suburbs to the west of the Adelaide CBD. The route is divided along its length and features both at-grade and grade-separated junctions and is one of the city's busiest routes.
The Southern Expressway was Australia's only one way motorway. At certain times of the day, it changed direction, depending on the peak flows of traffic. However upgrades have made it a standard dual carriageway motorway, with traffic travelling in both directions simultaneously.
At the location of the route, provision had been made for the development of a north-south transportation corridor serving the southern region since the late 1960s. In 1984 the then State Government announced the Third Arterial Project, the development of which was subsequently split into two phases: the upgrading of Main South Road and Marion Road in the Darlington area and the construction of a new road from Bedford Park / Darlington to Reynella. The Southern Expressway Project, announced in March 1995, forms the second phase of this project. 6
History:
Click here for the former alignment between Bedford Park and Hackham
Click here for the former alignment of M2 / A2.
| Preview: | Description: |
 |
Advance Directional Sign: AD sign on North-South Mwy (M2) approaching Grand Junction Rd at Wingfield, July 2014. Image © Michael Greenslade |
 |
Advance Directional Sign: AD sign on North-South Mwy (M2) approaching Grand Junction Rd at Wingfield, July 2014. Image © Michael Greenslade |
1 Location SA Map Viewer
2 The Bunyip, Fatchen' a tourist name, 28 May 2014
3 ABC News, More than memory lane: Fatchen's expressway, 6 November 2013
4 Infrastructure SA, Northern Connector, 15 August 2014
5 Government of South Australia, Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure, North-South Corridor, South Road Superway, Supporting The Superway
6 Parliament of South Australia, Southern Expressway Stage 2 Submission to the Parliamentary Public Works Committee, Environmental Report Summary
7 Project information sheet No. 4, Reinforced Earth Company Australia, August 1985
8 Highway Engineering in Australia, February-March 1985
9 Green Left, Expressway Opposition in Adelaide
10 Parliament of South Australia, Southern Expressway Stage 2 Submission to the Parliamentary Public Works Committee, Proposal
11 Built Environs, Southern Expressway Stage 2
12 Transport SA, Media Releases, Safety Improvements on the Southern Expressway
13 Transport SA, Media Releases, New Lighting Night Hours
14 Government of South Australia, Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure, Completed projects, Gallipoli Underpass
15 Adelaide Now, Northern Expressway open for business, 13 September 2010
16 Premier of South Australia, Mike Rann News, Safety Upgrade to Southern Expressway
17 Government of South Australia, Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure, South Road Upgrade, ANZAC Highway Underpass Community Update, August 2009
18 Government of South Australia, Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure, News, South Road Superway - Building roads and knowledge. 20 August 2010
19 Government of South Australia, Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure, Media Release, Use The South Road Superway and Save Time, 13 March 2014
20 Government of South Australia, Department of Planning, Transport and Infrastructure, Southern Expressway Duplication
21 Steven Marshall, Premier of South Australia, News, Permanent throw screens set for Southern Expressway, 21 November 2018
Last updated: 05 Sep 2019 19:36
This site © Paul Rands. All rights reserved. Some portions © (copyright) by their respective and credited owners. Permission must be obtained before using any images from this site. For details, please email by clicking here.