Westlink M7
Westlink M7 is one of Sydney's urban motorways and is a part of the Sydney Orbital Motorway. It connects 3 Metroads, M5 at Liverpool, M4 at Eastern Creek and M2 at Baulkham Hills. It opened on December 16, 2005, eight months ahead of schedule.
History
Sydney's West is the fastest growing region in the Sydney metropolitan area. Previous ring roads in the area, Ring Road 5, State Route 55 and later State Route 77 had instead become a primary artery for the western suburbs instead of their original job of bypassing Sydney.
By the late 1990s and first decade of the 21st century, Sydney's West is the third biggest producer of Australia's GDP behind Sydney CBD and Melbourne. Growth of industrial and residential areas brought about massive increase of traffic in its local roads. This led to the planning of the Western Sydney Orbital, which among its original purpose was to serve the stillborn second international airport at Badgerys Creek.
Due to the strategic importance of the Sydney's West, the Federal Government had decided to fund a freeway which in addition of becoming the main thoroughfare for Sydney's West, will also be a part of National Highway network linking the western suburbs with Pacific Highway in the north and Hume Highway in the south west. This change of emphasis led to the Western Sydney Orbital being renamed as "Westlink M7".
With its opening, the former Metroad 7 (Cumberland Highway) was decommisioned. Westlink M7 sports the new aphanumeric M7 square shield rather than the hexagon Metroad shield.
Course
In Sydney's southwest, the M7 starts at the M5/M7 interchange at Casula. It follows a new track until Elizabeth Drive/Wallgrove Road junction, Abbotsbury. From then on it runs parallel to Wallgrove Road until the Wallgrove Road/Great Western Highway junction, bypassing the M4 in what will become the Lighthorse Interchange, Australia's first motorway crossroads junction. Afterwards, it leads to Minchinbury and follows alongside Rooty Hill Road North until Dean Park. The final section runs east-west until M2 Motorway.
It passes through suburbs like Hinchinbrook, Cecil Park, Abbotsbury, Horsley Park, Eastern Creek where it crosses and intersects the M4 Motorway, Oakhurst, Quakers Hill, Acacia Gardens and finally ends at Baulkham Hills where it joins the M2 Motorway.
It is built as a fully tolled gateless motorway employing fully electronic payment and is expected to reduce transit time across the western suburbs by 1 hour at least.
Interchanges
- Metroad 5 (M5 Motorway), Casula
- Bernera Road, Prestons
- Cowpasture Road, Hinchinbrook
- Elizabeth Drive, Cecil Park
- Villiers Road, Cecil Park
- Horsley Drive, Horsley Park
- Wallgrove Road, Eastern Creek
- Metroad 4 (M4 Motorway), Eastern Creek
- Great Western Highway, Eastern Creek
- Richmond Road, Oakhurst
- Quakers Hill Parkway, Quakers Hill
- Sunnyholt Road, Acacia Gardens
- Norwest Boulevard, Glenwood
- Metroad 2 (Old Windsor Rd), Blacktown
- Metroad 2 (Hills Motorway), Baulkham Hills