Sydney Orbital Network
The Sydney Orbital Network is a 110 kilometre motorway standard ring road or orbital around the city of Sydney, the capital of New South Wales in Australia. It runs north from Sydney Airport, underneath the CBD to the North Shore, west to the Hills District, south to Prestons and then east to connect with the airport. Much of the road is privately owned and financed by tolls.
History
Planning for this beltway, orbital or ring road began as early as 1962 under the "County of Cumberland scheme" and was talked about as far back as 1944. Then, from 1973 to 1989, things started to take shape with new sections opening-up and then further advancing by 1999. In 2007, the Lane Cove Tunnel opened, completing the orbital network.Motorways that make up the orbital road
The 110 km Sydney orbital consists of several motorways and freeways, they are listed below:- Eastern Distributor
- Southern Cross Drive
- General Holmes Drive
- M5 East Motorway
- M5 South Western Motorway
- Westlink M7
- M2 Hills Motorway
- Lane Cove Tunnel
- Gore Hill Freeway
- Warringah Freeway
- Sydney Harbour Tunnel
- Sydney Harbour Tunnel
- Eastern Distributor
- M5 East tunnel
- Epping Tunnel
- Sunken Section of the M2 Hills Motorway
- Lane Cove Tunnel
- Parts of the Westlink M7
- Parts of Southern Cross and General Holmes Drive
There is significant upgrade work occurring as part of the WestConnex project, which will see the M5 duplicated along with the addition of new freeways to the Sydney network.
Tolling
The Sydney Orbital Road Network consists of a number of roads built by private companies: tolling is mostly unavoidable when using the road network.| Road | Direction | Opened | Toll Collection Method | Toll Pricing | Price | Operator |
| Eastern Distributor | Northbound | 1999 | Electronic | Flat rate | $7.23 | Transurban |
| M5 South Western Motorway | Both | 1992 | Electronic | Flat rate | $4.65 | Interlink Roads |
| Westlink M7 | Both | 2005 | Electronic | Distance based | $0.3996/km - capped at $7.99 | Transurban |
| M2 Hills Motorway | Both | 1997 | Electronic | Each direction/ Fixed | $7.16 $3.58 $2.53 $2.12 $3.58 | Transurban |
| Lane Cove Tunnel | Both | 2007 | Electronic | Flat rate | $3.27 | Transurban |
| Sydney Harbour Bridge | Southbound | 1932 | Electronic | Time based | Weekdays $3.00 $4 $2.50 ; Weekends $3 $2.50 | RMS |
| Sydney Harbour Tunnel | Southbound | 1992 | Electronic | Time based | Weekdays $3.00 $4 $2.50 ; Weekends $3 $2.50 | RMS |
Highway links
Intercity highways are linked to the Orbital, moving traffic away from the old busy National Routes. They are:- Pennant Hills Rd - linking M1 Pacific Motorway, Newcastle and Brisbane to M2 Hills Motorway
- M4 Western Motorway - linking Great Western Highway and Bathurst to Westlink M7
- M31 Hume Motorway - linking Melbourne and Canberra to M5 South Western Motorway and Westlink M7
- King Georges Rd - linking Princes Highway, M1 Princes Motorway and Wollongong to M5 South Western Motorway
Proposed or missing freeway/motorway links
- Link to the M1 Pacific Motorway - In 2015 construction of the NorthConnex tunnel under Pennant Hills Road commenced. Due for completion in the third quarter of 2020.
- Partial link to the M1 Princes Motorway - A proposal that links the New M5 Tunnels and the southern suburbs of Sydney, as the M6 Motorway. The only section which was built is the Captain Cook Bridge and its approaches. Land is still reserved north of this point through Sandringham, and south through the Royal National Park. In October 2017, the government announced it will proceed with Stage 1 of the F6 extension, which will run via two 4 km tunnels linking the New M5 tunnels at Arncliffe to President Avenue at Kogarah. In October 2019, the government announced a name change of the extension to M6 Motorway and also confirmed the completion date of Stage 1 would be pushed back to late 2025, with major construction to begin by early 2022.
- WestConnex - A proposal that incorporates the M5 duplication project and the M4 East extension of the M4 Motorway to the M5 South Western Motorway, involving a cutting along Parramatta Road, a tunnel from Taveners Hill to St Peters and a surface motorway to the M5 at Arncliffe.