Cobb Highway

Cobb Highway
Proposed to replace
Length	598 km (372 mi)
Direction	North-South
From	Barrier Highway, Wilcannia, New South Wales
via	Ivanhoe, Booligal, Hay, Deniliquin
To	Northern Highway, Moama, NSW / Echuca, Victoria (NSW/Vic Border)
Major junctions	Mid-Western Highway Sturt Highway Riverina Highway for full list see major intersections

The Cobb Highway is a State highway in western New South Wales, Australia.  From north to south the Cobb Highway begins at its junction with the Barrier Highway near Wilcannia and runs south through the townships of Ivanhoe, Booligal, Hay and Deniliquin.  It ends at Moama where the highway crosses the New South Wales/Victoria border at the Murray River and continues south through Victoria as the Northern Highway.

The Cobb Highway was named after Cobb and Co, a company which ran a network of stagecoaches in inland Australia in the latter half of the 19th century and early in the 20th century.  The highway follows an old coach route through the Riverina, connecting the Murray, Murrumbidgee and Lachlan Rivers, and across the intervening plains to the Darling River at Wilcannia.  The Cobb Highway is sealed as far north as 10 km north of Ivanhoe. It is one of the most remote and could be one of the least-used of the highways of New South Wales.

The highway travels through diverse changes in scenery, from the Murray River, enclosed farming land in the Riverina, to open grazing land and semi-desert towards the middle and northern sections. The speed limit is posted at 100 km/h except from three sections where the limit is 110 km/h, being: 40 km north of Deniliquin until Hay, Hay until a few kilometres north of Booligal and the final 110 km/h zone being from just south of Mossgiel to Ivanhoe.

History

In the 1930s the road now known as the Cobb Highway was proclaimed as part of State Highway 21, which also included the road north through Wilcannia, White Cliffs and Tibooburra to Warri Gate at the Queensland border.

Highway 21 was truncated 18 kilometres south of Wilcannia on 9 February 1945 when the Silver City Highway was proclaimed.  The Cobb Highway received its name in 1947 in commemoration of the Cobb & Co. coach company.

In 1954, with the institution of the National Route system, the Cobb Highway in NSW and the Northern Highway in Victoria were designated to be National Route 75.

In May 1969 a bridge over the Edward River at Deniliquin was constructed (replacing a timber bridge built in 1895).  In June 1973 a bridge over Murrumbidgee River at Hay was built (replacing the 1874 opening bridge).

The Long Paddock project

The Cobb Highway is part of a very significant Travelling Stock routes network that traverses New South Wales. This highway is the focus of a major tourism initiative entitled 'The Long Paddock', developed by the shires along the route (Murray, Deniliquin, Conargo, Hay and Central Darling).  The Long Paddock project aims to create sustainable communities along the Cobb Highway through the development of a dynamic cultural heritage touring route.  The project uses the consistent theme of transportation, involving elements of history, creative interpretation and local environment, to link the communities along the highway.

Major intersections and towns

Cobb Highway
Northbound	Distance to Wilcannia (km)	Distance to Melbourne (km)	Southbound
Crossroads (clockwise from highway) Barrier Highway to Wilcannia and Broken Hill Barrier Highway to Cobar and Dubbo
End Cobb Highway	20	793	Start Cobb Highway
Menindee Ivanhoe-Menindee Road	178	635	Menindee Ivanhoe-Menindee Road
Ivanhoe	182	631	Ivanhoe
Balranald Balranald Road	182.5	630.5	Balranald, Swan Hill Balranald Road
Cobar Behring Street	183	630	Cobar Behring Street
BROKEN HILL RAIL LINE	185	628	BROKEN HILL RAIL LINE
Hillston Mossgiel Trunk Road	233	580	Hillston, Griffith Mossgiel Trunk Road
Hillston, Cobar, Bourke Lachlan Valley Way	315	498	Hillston Lachlan Valley Way
continues as	392	421	Goolgowi, West Wyalong, Bathurst, Sydney Mid-Western Highway
Goolgowi, West Wyalong, Bathurst, Sydney Mid-Western Highway			continues as
Maude Cadell Street	392.5	421.5	Maude Cadell Street
Hay	393	420	Hay
MURRUMBIDGEE RIVER	394	419	MURRUMBIDGEE RIVER
continues as	395	418	Narrandera, Wagga Wagga, Sydney; Balranald, Mildura, Adelaide Sturt Highway
Balranald, Mildura, Adelaide; Narrandera, Wagga Wagga, Sydney Sturt Highway			End continues as
Jerilderie Jerilderie Road	402	411	Jerilderie Jerilderie Road
Moulamein Moulamein Road	499	314	Moulamein Moulamein Road
Finley, Berrigan, Albury Riverina Highway	516	297	Finley, Berrigan, Albury Riverina Highway
Deniliquin	517	296	Deniliquin
Barham, Kerang Deniliquin-Barham Road	518	295	Barham, Kerang Deniliquin-Barham Road
Mathoura	550	263	Mathoura
Barmah, Nathalia Barmah Road	576	237	Barmah, Nathalia Barmah Road
Womboota Perricoota Road	590	223	Womboota Perricoota Road
Moama	591	222	Moama
Start Cobb Highway from Northern Highway	592	221	End Cobb Highway
MURRAY RIVER			MURRAY RIVER
NEW SOUTH WALES STATE BORDER VICTORIA
	592	221	continues as Northern Highway to Echuca / Bendigo / Melbourne

See also

• Highways in Australia
• List of highways in New South Wales

External links

• The Long Paddock: Cobb Highway Touring Route website.