Max Fatchen Expressway

For the portion of U.S. Interstate 93 north of Boston also known as Northern Expressway, see Northern Expressway (Massachusetts).

Max Fatchen Expressway Northern Expressway South Australia
The Max Fatchen Expressway looking north, halfway along the expressway
Coordinates
General information
Type	Freeway
Length	23 km (14 mi)
Opened	13 September 2010
Route number(s)	National Highway M20
Major junctions
NE end	Gawler Bypass Road, Gawler, Adelaide
	Gawler Bypass Port Wakefield Road
SW end	Port Wakefield Road, Waterloo Corner
Location(s)
Major suburbs / towns	Angle Vale, Andrews Farm, Macdonald Park, Penfield
Highway system
Highways in Australia National Highway • Freeways in Australia Highways in South Australia

The Max Fatchen Expressway (route M20), previously known as the Northern Expressway, is a 23 kilometre long controlled-access highway in Adelaide, South Australia. It travels from Gawler (on National Highway A20, the Sturt Highway) to Port Wakefield Road (on National Highway A1). The road has been built to four-lane standard and provides a faster route between Adelaide and Gawler, whilst reducing the amount of traffic on Main North Road, which passes through the heart of the northern suburbs and is interspersed with frequent traffic lights. It also allows freight avoid residential areas and go straight to Port Wakefield Road and onto the Port River Expressway (A9) to reach the harbour at Port Adelaide.

Cycling is not permitted on the Expressway. The Stuart O'Grady Bikeway is a sealed shared cycling and walking path adjacent to the eastern side of the expressway. The northern end connects to the on-ramp from Two Wells Road to the Gawler Bypass Road, and the southern end is adjacent to Port Wakefield Road at Mill Road.

History

The largest road project undertaken in South Australia in at least sixty years, the expressway was delivered at a cost of approximately $564 million jointly funded by the South Australian and Commonwealth Governments. The Design and Construct contract was awarded to the Fulton Hogan York Joint Venture, a partnership between trans-Tasman contractor Fulton Hogan and South Australian based York Civil. The design joint venture, managed by Fulton Hogan York Joint Venture consisted of Maunsell, SMEC and Dare Sutton Clark. The work included an 8 km upgrade of the existing Port Wakefield Road. Part of the cost was covered by the AusLink national transport funding.

Construction began in 2008 and the road opened on 13 September 2010.

The interchanges/bridges along the expressway were all named after famous battles in which Australian forces fought, such as Long Tan, Kokoda, Tobruk, Kapyong and Hamel.

In November 2013, one year after the death of prominent South Australian author and journalist Max Fatchen, the Northern Expressway was renamed the Max Fatchen Expressway in his honour.

Exit list

Looking south along Port Wakefield Road towards the interchange at the start of the Max Fatchen Expressway

Route and Interchange list for Max Fatchen Expressway and the proposed Northern Connector. Distances are calculated from Gawler Bypass end of Expressway

LGA	Location	km	mi	Name	Destinations	Notes
Light	Ward Belt, Reid, Buchfelde	0.0	0.0		merges and continues as Gawler Bypass Road – Nuriootpa, Mildura, Sydney
	Buchfelde, Gawler River	4.1	2.5	Long Tan	Two Wells Road – Two Wells / Gawler	ramps on Adelaide side only
	Gawler River, Buchfelde, Angle Vale, Hillier	5.0	3.1	Gawler River
Playford	Hillier, Munno Para Downs, Angle Vale	7.5	4.7	Kapyong	Angle Vale Road – Angle Vale, Virginia / Evanston
	Munno Para West, Andrews Farm, Angle Vale, MacDonald Park	10.8	6.7	Kokoda	Curtis Road – Andrews Farm / Angle Vale
	Penfield Gardens, MacDonald Park, Penfield	15.1	9.4	Tobruk	Heaslip Road – Edinburgh
	Penfield Gardens, Penfield	17.3	10.7	Hamel	Penfield Road – Virginia	ramps on Adelaide side only
	Penfield, Waterloo Corner, Virginia, Penfield Gardens	18.8	11.7	Adelaide-Port Augusta railway line
	Waterloo Corner, Virginia	21	13		merges to Port Wakefield Road – Adelaide	no right turn to Port Wakefield Road
Incomplete access

Map

Max Fatchen Expressway
Legend Gawler Bypass Gawler Bypass Gawler West Interchange Two Wells Road Two Wells Road Long Tan Interchange Gawler River Gawler River Kapyong Interchange Angle Vale Road Angle Vale Road Kokoda Interchange Curtis Road Curtis Road Womma Road Heaslip Road Heaslip Road Tobruk Interchange Penfield Road Penfield Road Hamel Interchange x20px x20px Adelaide-Port Augusta railway Port Wakefield Road

Proposed Northern Connector

In early 2008, the South Australian Government announced plans for the Northern Connector, an eight lane connector roadway, linking the Northern Expressway and South Road. This would involve the construction of a four-way cloverstack interchange at the Port River Expressway / South Road intersection. This project would also include a major diversion in the main ARTC interstate rail line, which would run down the middle of the new connector freeway between Dry Creek, South Australia and Taylors Road at Waterloo Corner.

The funding for the road and shared path components was announced in September 2015, with construction expected to start in early 2016 for completion around 2019. The rail component is not funded at this stage.

See also

• Freeways in Australia
• Freeways in South Australia

External links

• http://www.northernexpressway.sa.gov.au/ Official site