Brookton Highway
Encyclopedia
Brookton Highway is a 504 kilometre long undivided single carriageway highway in Western Australia
, running from the southern Perth
suburb of Kelmscott
, through Westdale, to the southern Wheatbelt town of Brookton
. It is signposted as State Route 40, however the route and highway continues on far past Brookton, passing through Corrigin
, Kondinin
, Hyden
, Lake King
, and finishing at South Coast Highway
, just west of Ravensthorpe
.
Near Kelmscott, the road passes through thick jarrah forest in the Darling Scarp
; however further east, the landscape soon becomes flat and uninteresting, passing through wheat farming regions until reaching Ravensthorpe
. The eastern part of Route 40 is quite narrow in places, which presents a problem as the road is used by tourists driving to Wave Rock
. The state government
is progressively upgrading sections of the road.
The highway is a part of the route linking Perth
to Esperance
and is identified as a strategic freight and tourist route.
For most of the road it is able to cater for heavy vehicle combinations up to 36.5m in length which generally carry grain and livestock. Tourism traffic, particularly to Wave Rock
, is also prevalent along the western stretch of the road.
The devasating bushfire in Kelmscott
and Roleystone
that claimed 71 homes and damaged 39 more also destroyed the Buckingham Bridge on February 6 2011. Buckingham Bridge had originally been built from timber in 1935
. A temporary bridge over the Canning River was opened 4 March 2011 and was constructed using 400 tonnes of rock, 250 tonnes of crushed limestone
and 4500 tonne
s of fill material. Only heavy vehilcles are unable to use the structure and must detour at Welshpool Road.
This part of the highway is used by up to 4,000 vehicles per day.
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
, running from the southern Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
suburb of Kelmscott
Kelmscott, Western Australia
Kelmscott is a southeastern suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of Armadale, and it is located southeast of Perth along Albany Highway....
, through Westdale, to the southern Wheatbelt town of Brookton
Brookton, Western Australia
Brookton is a town located in the Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, Australia, from the state capital, Perth via the Brookton Highway where it crosses the Great Southern Highway. The town is also located on the Great Southern railway line. It is located within, and is the seat of government...
. It is signposted as State Route 40, however the route and highway continues on far past Brookton, passing through Corrigin
Corrigin, Western Australia
Corrigin is a town located in the central Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, east-southeast of the state capital, Perth, Western Australia, along State Route 40...
, Kondinin
Kondinin, Western Australia
Kondinin is a town located in the Eastern Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, east of the state capital, Perth via the Brookton Highway and State Route 40 between Corrigin and Hyden. It is the main town in the Shire of Kondinin...
, Hyden
Hyden, Western Australia
The town of Hyden is located 339 km east of Perth, Western Australia in the Shire of Kondinin. Hyden is home to Wave Rock and Mulka's Cave, both popular local tourist attractions....
, Lake King
Lake King, Western Australia
Lake King is a town located in the Eastern Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, from Perth along State Route 107 between Wagin and Ravensthorpe....
, and finishing at South Coast Highway
South Coast Highway
South Coast Highway is a Western Australia highway. It is a part of the Highway 1 network.With a length of , it runs from Esperance to Walpole roughly in parallel to the Western Australia's south coast...
, just west of Ravensthorpe
Ravensthorpe, Western Australia
Ravensthorpe is a town 541 km south east of Perth, 40 km inland from the south coast of Western Australia. It is the seat of government of the Shire of Ravensthorpe...
.
Near Kelmscott, the road passes through thick jarrah forest in the Darling Scarp
Darling Scarp
The Darling Scarp, also referred to as the Darling Range or Darling Ranges, is a low escarpment running north-south to the east of the Swan Coastal Plain and Perth, Western Australia...
; however further east, the landscape soon becomes flat and uninteresting, passing through wheat farming regions until reaching Ravensthorpe
Ravensthorpe, Western Australia
Ravensthorpe is a town 541 km south east of Perth, 40 km inland from the south coast of Western Australia. It is the seat of government of the Shire of Ravensthorpe...
. The eastern part of Route 40 is quite narrow in places, which presents a problem as the road is used by tourists driving to Wave Rock
Wave Rock
Wave Rock is a natural rock formation located east of the small town of Hyden in Western Australia that is shaped like a tall breaking ocean wave.Wave Rock has cultural significance to Aborigines...
. The state government
Government of Western Australia
The formation of the Government of Western Australia is prescribed in its Constitution, which dates from 1890, although it has been amended many times since then...
is progressively upgrading sections of the road.
The highway is a part of the route linking Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
to Esperance
Esperance, Western Australia
Esperance is a large town in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, located on the Southern Ocean coastline approximately east-southeast of the state capital, Perth. The shire of Esperance is home to 9,536 people as of the 2006 census, its major industries are tourism, agriculture,...
and is identified as a strategic freight and tourist route.
For most of the road it is able to cater for heavy vehicle combinations up to 36.5m in length which generally carry grain and livestock. Tourism traffic, particularly to Wave Rock
Wave Rock
Wave Rock is a natural rock formation located east of the small town of Hyden in Western Australia that is shaped like a tall breaking ocean wave.Wave Rock has cultural significance to Aborigines...
, is also prevalent along the western stretch of the road.
The devasating bushfire in Kelmscott
Kelmscott, Western Australia
Kelmscott is a southeastern suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of Armadale, and it is located southeast of Perth along Albany Highway....
and Roleystone
Roleystone, Western Australia
Roleystone is an outer southeastern suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Its Local Government Area is the City of Armadale.-History:Roleystone's name originates from a property purchased by Thomas Buckingham in 1858, upon which he built a sawmill in 1866. The town was also referred to as "The...
that claimed 71 homes and damaged 39 more also destroyed the Buckingham Bridge on February 6 2011. Buckingham Bridge had originally been built from timber in 1935
. A temporary bridge over the Canning River was opened 4 March 2011 and was constructed using 400 tonnes of rock, 250 tonnes of crushed limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
and 4500 tonne
Tonne
The tonne, known as the metric ton in the US , often put pleonastically as "metric tonne" to avoid confusion with ton, is a metric system unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. The tonne is not an International System of Units unit, but is accepted for use with the SI...
s of fill material. Only heavy vehilcles are unable to use the structure and must detour at Welshpool Road.
This part of the highway is used by up to 4,000 vehicles per day.
See also
- Highways in AustraliaHighways in AustraliaThis is a list of highways in Australia, listed alphabetically along with each highway's route number and location. Note that some highways service more than one state or territory.-Route numbering systems:...
- List of highways in Western Australia