South Eastern Freeway
South Eastern Freeway is a 73 km (45 mi) freeway in South Australia (SA). It is a part of the National Highway network linking the state capital cities of Adelaide, SA, and Melbourne, Victoria, and is signed as route M1. It carries traffic over the Adelaide Hills between Adelaide and the River Murray, near Murray Bridge, where it is connected via the Swanport Bridge to the Dukes Highway, which is the main road route to Victoria.
South Eastern Freeway | |
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West end East end | |
| Coordinates |
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| General information | |
| Type | Freeway |
| Length | 73.1 km (45 mi) |
| Opened | 1967–2000 |
| Route number(s) | M1 (2017–present) |
| Former route number |
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| Major junctions | |
| West end | Glen Osmond Road Glen Osmond, Adelaide |
| East end | Princes Highway Long Flat, South Australia |
| Location(s) | |
| Region | Eastern Adelaide, Adelaide Hills, Murray and Mallee |
| Major suburbs / towns | Crafers, Stirling, Bridgewater, Hahndorf, Mount Barker, Callington, Monarto, Murray Bridge |
| Highway system | |
It was formerly signposted as Princes Highway, which refers to the coastal route from Adelaide to Sydney via Melbourne.
It is often referred to by South Australians simply as the freeway, as it was the first freeway in South Australia, and is still the longest, and the only one with "Freeway" in its name rather than "Expressway" or "Highway". South Eastern Freeway includes 500 m (1,600 ft) twin-tube tunnels – the Heysen Tunnels – in the descent towards Adelaide, the first of their kind on the National Highway.