Western Highway 
The Western Highway is the main road between Melbourne and Adelaide. Starting
in the city of Melbourne, it makes its way north-west into the Bacchus
Marsh valley, and up into Ballarat. From Ballarat, the highway loses its
freeway tag, passes through rich farming area, and into the Grampians district
at Ararat. The highway heads further north west, bypassing Stawell and
into the Wimmera region, and its main centre, Horsham. As the road heads
westerly, the countryside changes dramatically, as the ranges drop away
and the mallee scrub is the prominent vegetation, promoting an obvious
and different land use all the way to the SA border.
Start: Melbourne
Principal Towns/Cities: Melbourne,
Bacchus Marsh *, Ballarat *, Beaufort, Ararat,
Stawell *, Horsham, Dimboola
*, Nhill, Kaniva,
Bordertown (SA)
Finish: SA border (Bordertown)
Length: 443km
Road Standard: Excellent. Freeway from Melbourne - Ballarat.
Numerous overtaking lanes elsewhere. Road has just been upgraded between
Nhill and the SA border with overtaking lanes.
Road Quality: Bitumen, excellent grade
Road Continuation: Click for the Dukes Highway in SA
* refers to towns/cities bypassed by the Western Highway/Freeway
Heading south-east on the Western Highway between Dimboola and
Horsham (2000).
Heading west on the Western Highway between Nhill and Kaniva
(1999).
Heading south-east on the Western Highway, just out of Horsham,
VIC (2000).
Copyright MG 2002