Main Roads Victoria: State Route Numbering System

	State Route Numbering System
	The former route numbering in rural Victoria
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State Route 112 / State Route 111 Advance Direction sign on Glenelg Highway in Dunkeld.

Picture courtesy VicRoads.

Prior to the Statewide Route Numbering Scheme (MABC routes), Victoria regional routes had a system much like the Melbourne Metropolitan area. These were called State Routes (SR), to distinguish them from two-digit routes in the metropolitan region of Melbourne.

The State Route Numbering System was launched on 13th December 1985 with the unveiling of the first state route sign located at the intersection of South Gippsland Highway and Greens Road ^[1], making State Route 180 the first signposted route. The new route numbering system, essentially an extension of the metropolitan system, had been planned by the Road Construction Authority in consultation with other state departments and local governments.

The routes to be designated were main throughways having major significant intra-state and regional links. The numbering of routes occurred with lower numbers in Western Victoria gradually increasing in a clockwise direction to the east of the state. North - South routes were generally odd numbers, while East - West routes were even numbers. In addition, routes of major tourist importance were added to the system, such as SR100 Great Ocean Road and SR189 to Wilsons Promontory. The first highways, signed by the end of 1986, were the Bellarine Highway (SR91), section 2 of the Goulburn Valley Highway (SR168), Bass Highway (SR181), Henty Highway (SR107), sections 3 & 5 of the Midland Highway (SR149) near Benalla, Melba Highway (SR153), Maroondah Highway (SR34 / 153), South Gippsland Highway (SR180), and the Sunraysia Highway (SR121) ^[1]^[2].

Initially, these routes were signed with topknots (route shield and arrow affixed to the top of the sign) utilising original signs, where 2000 had been made for the first routes [1]. In some cases, these signs were more than twenty years old, and were worn out and/or outdated. As a result, new signs were developed using road names and shield in one sign. The use of trailblazers at minor intersections and along the route was common practice, as 4000 were installed alone in the first years of the system. ^[1]

Between 1987 and 1994, 6 new routes were added - 104, 154, 175, 176, 182 and 188. The final total stood at 36 three-digit routes.

There was also one alternative route, ALT SR153, which looped from SR153 into the town of Mansfield.

Routes 91 - 98 were reserved for use in the greater Geelong region. But only one route emerged - State Route 91 on the Bellarine Hwy. It could be speculated if that the more routes were introduced, it would consist of roads in urban Geelong, possibly the routes that are currently holding a C route number.

The system lasted for 11 or so years, before the Statewide Route Numbering Scheme was first introduced in the north east of Victoria in 1996. By 2000, all State Routes outside Melbourne were converted into M, A, B or C routes (the majority converted into B routes), with most of the state being converted in 1998.

In this section, former 'Mornington Peninsula Routes' will be covered, an extension of the metropolitan route numbering introduced in 1989. Many of these routes were spread out throughout the peninsula, serving communities which spread from Frankston to Flinders. The routes numbered between 60 and 73, with a total of 8 routes signed. As like the other state routes, these routes were replaced by the Statewide Route Numbering System in 1998.

Routes of System:

Mornington Peninsula Routes

	Baxter - Tooradin Road Baxter - Tooradin		Mornington - Tyabb Rd Mornington - Tyabb
	Bittern - Dromana Rd Dromana - Bittern		South Gippsland Fwy & Western Port Hwy Doveton - Hastings
	Flinders Frankston - Rosebud		Balnarring Road Tuerong - Balnarring
	Mornington - Flinders Rd Tuerong - Flinders		Coolart Rd Baxter - Balnarring

Geelong Routes

Bellarine Highway
Geelong - Queenscliff

Three-Digit Routes

	Great Ocean Road & Princes Highway Portland - Geelong		Hopkins Highway Mortlake - Warrnambool
	Hamilton Highway Geelong - Hamilton		Henty Highway Lascelles - Portland
	Grampians Stawell - Dunkeld		Glenelg Highway Ballarat - SA Border - (Mount Gambier East, SA)
	Sunraysia Highway Ouyen - Ballarat		Pyrenees Highway Ararat - Elphinstone
	Grampians Riverside (Horsham) - Ararat		Wimmera Highway St Arnuad - SA Border - (Naracoorte, SA)
	Borung Highway Dimboola - Charlton		Loddon Valley Highway & McIvor Highway Kerang - Heathcote
	Hattah - Robinvale Road Hattah - Robinvale		Midland Highway Geelong - Benalla
	Melba Highway, Maroondah Highway & Midland Highway Benalla - Coldstream		Wodonga - Beechworth Road Wodonga - Tarrawingee
	Ovens Highway & Alpine Road Wangaratta - Omeo		High Country Wangaratta South - Running Creek
	Mount Buller Road Mansfield - Mount Buller		Goulburn Valley Highway Seymour - Eildon
	Lake Mountain Nabethong - Lake Mountain		Taggerty - Thornton Road Taggerty - Thornton
	Warburton Highway Lilydale - Warburton		Yarra Valley & South Gippsland Castella - Korumburra
	Mount Donna Buang Warburton - Mount Donna Buang		South Gippsland Highway Dandenong - Sale
	Bass Highway Anderson - Leongatha		Strzelecki Highway Morwell - Leongatha
	Phillip Island Road Anderson - Cowes		Hyland Highway Morwell - Yarram
	Wilsons Promontory Meeniyan - Tidal River		Monash Way Morwell - Churchill
	Kiewa Valley Bandiana - Glen Valley		Omeo Highway Tallangatta - Bairnsdale
	Bonang Road Orbost - NSW Border

Alternative Routes

Mansfield Loop
Maindample - Barjarg

[1] Road Construction Authority; Roads Vic; Jan/Feb 1986; p.11
[2] Road Construction Authority; Annual Report 1986; June 1986; p.42