Statistics:
- Length:
38 km
- Northern
Terminus: Bruce Highway / Gateway Motorway (M1) at Bald
Hills.
- Southern
Terminus: Pacific Motorway (M1) / Gateway Motorway (M2) at
Eight Mile Plains.
- Miscellaneous:
Former names include Riverside Expressway, Southeast Arterial Road and
Southeast Freeway.
- Suburbs, Towns
& Localities Along The Route: Eight Mile Plains,
Macgregor, Upper Mount Gravatt, Mount Gravatt, Nathan, Holland Park
West, Tarragindi, Greenslopes, Woolloongabba, South Brisbane, Brisbane
(CBD), Milton, Paddington, Bowen Hills, Windsor, Lutwyche, Wooloowin,
Kedron, Wavell Heights, Chermside, Aspley, Carseldine and Bald Hills.
Route Numbering:
- Current:
![](../../../../../../../../images/routenumbers/alphas/a-routes/a3.png)
- Former:
![](../../../../../../../../images/routenumbers/nationalroutes/nr1.png)
- Multiplexes:
![](../../../../../../../../images/routenumbers/stateroutes/sr40.png)
- QMR
Internal Classification: U12A (Pacific Motorway (South
East Arterial Route)) & U14 (Gympie Arterial Road) 1
General Information:
The route takes in the Brisbane's inner south and also skirts
the CBD via what was once called the Riverside Expressway, then continues
into the northern suburbs via Coronation Drive, Hale Street and the Inner
City Bypass before connecting with Bowen Bridge Road, Lutwyche Road, Gympie
Road and finally the Gympie Arterial Road for the connection to the Bruce
Highway at the Gateway Motorway (M1) junction.
Along the route you'll find the Captain Cook Bridge. It
is the third crossing of the Brisbane River. It crosses at the South Brisbane
Reach of the river, and links Gardens Point to Woolloongabba. It carries four
lanes of traffic in either direction.
The Pacific Motorway section of the route had 2
names, the bridges and interchanges in the Brisbane CBD was called the
Riverside Expressway and the freeway south of the CBD was known as the
South East Freeway. The South East Freeway and Riverside Expressway
were two of the early projects to be completed from the Wilbur Smith
"Brisbane Transportation Study", which was published in 1965 and made
recommendations covering sixteen years to 1981. 2
Multiplexes along the route include:
- State Route 40 (from Carseldine to Bald Hills) for 1.5 km
History:
- 1965: American consultant Wilbur Smith, recommended an
extensive freeway system for Brisbane (as part of the Brisbane
Transportation Study), with the first section of the South East Freeway
opening in 1970s. 3
- 1966: The Coordinator-General’s Department commenced the
design of the Riverside Expressway and the Captain Cook Bridge. 4
- 20 August 1969: The construction contract for the Riverside
Expressway was let to Messrs. McDougall-Ireland Pty Ltd. 4
- November 1972 5: The Captain Cook
Bridge and the first stage of the Southeast Freeway were opened to
traffic. 6
- Mid 1970s: Construction of Gympie Arterial Road in the Bald
Hills area. 7
- 1975: Work on the Southeast Freeway (now Pacific Motorway)
to extend it to Holland Park. 8
- 22 July 1976: Riverside Expressway opened to traffic. 9
- 1976: First sections of the South East Freeway
completed. 10
- 1977: The South East Freeway reached Marshall Road. 2
- 1980: The South East Freeway reached Klumpp Rd & Mains Road. 2
- 1982: The South East Freeway reached Logan Road. 2
- 1985: The South East Freeway reached the Pacific Highway at
Springwood. 2
- March 1996: The Queensland Government announced its
intention to widen the South East Freeway to eight lanes between the
Brisbane central business district and the Gold Coast. In the Brisbane
City and Logan City areas, the Transport Planning (south-east
Queensland) Branch of Queensland Transport proposed that the additional
lanes should be provided as busway lanes and transit lanes. 11
- 13 September 2000: The first section of busway between the
CBD and Woolloongabba was opened to services, which coincided with the
first match in the Sydney 2000 Olympic Games Football Tournament at
Woolloongabba. 11
- 30 April 2001: The second section of busway between
Woolloongabba and Eight Mile Plains opened. 11
- November 2001: Stage 1 of Inner City Bypass (Hale Street to
Campbell Street) opened. 11
- February 2002: Stage 2 of Inner City Bypass (Campbell Street to
Abbotsford Road) opened. 11
- July 2002: Stage 3 of Inner City Bypass (Abbotsford Road to
Kingsford Smith Drive) opened. This section is not part of the M3 / A3
corridor.
- June 2004: Installation of noise barriers along Gympie Road
between Webster Road and Kildonan Street, Chermside. 12
- June 2005: Extension of the four lanes on Gympie Road to
the roundabout to the intersection of Gympie Road, Anzac Avenue and
Dayboro Road, Petrie. 12
- September 2005: Addition of traffic signals to
the Intersection of Gympie Road and Sadlier Street, Kedron,
also the removal of right-turn access from Webster
Road North into Gympie Road and diverted right-turning traffic to the
Gympie Road and Darwin Street intersection. 12
- November 2005: At the intersection of Gympie Road and
Webster Road, Chermside, Main Roads removed right-turn access from
Webster Road North into Gympie Road, diverted right-turning traffic to
the Gympie Road and Darwin Street intersection and modified the traffic
signals. 12
- May 2006: Along Gympie Road between Kedron Park Road and
Leckie Road, Kedron, upgrades were made to the intersections
to improve safety and traffic operation. 12
- December 2006: At the intersection of Gympie Road,
Samsonvale Road and Bells Pocket Road, Strathpine, the
existing traffic signals were updated with new brighter light emitting
diode lanterns. Changers were also made to the traffic signals
so that traffic can only turn right when protected by a green arrow and
extensions were made to the right-turn lanes on the northern side of
the intersection by 40 m, and on the southern side by 50 m. 12
- May 2007: At the intersection of Gympie Road, Samsonvale
Road and Bells Pocket Road, Strathpine, work was done to replace the
existing traffic signals, changes were made to the traffic signals
timing and extenions done to the right-turn lanes. 12
- June 2007: At the intersection of Gympie Road and Webster
Road, Aspley, Main Roads modified signals to provide exclusive
right-turn phases for vehicles turning right from Webster Road,
provided second left turn lane for vehicles turning left from Webster
Road south to Gympie Road west, removed pedestrian crossing on Webster
Road South and Gympie Road West approaches and provided staged
pedestrian crossing on the Gympie Road East approach. 12
- June 2008: At the ntersection of Gympie Road and
Kremzow Road, Brendale, a right-turn lane on Gympie Road was
constructed. 12
- 2009:
Metroad 3 decommissioned, route renumbered M3 for motorway standard /
limited access sections and A3 for suburban arterial road sections. 13
Click inside one of the green boxes on the map
below to view each section of the route.
1 State
Road Network of Queensland Map, 30 June 2008
2 Queensland Roads, March 2009
3 The 200 km City Web Site
4 Queensland
Roads, Edition No. 4, Sept 07
5 Redcliffe City Library
6 Queensland State Archives, 1972 Cabinet Minutes
7 State Library of Queensland Web Site
8 Queensland State Archives, 1975 Cabinet Minutes Historian's Report
9 Queensland
State Archives, 1976
Cabinet Minutes
10 Brisbane City Council Annual Report 06-07
11 Busway Website History Web Page
12 Main Roads Gympie
Road Upgrade Web Page
13 Michael Greenslade
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