Statistics:
- Length:
- 1058 km
- Termini:
- Northern: Cunningham Highway (A39), Boggabilla, at the NSW / QLD Border
- Southern: Goulburn Valley Hwy (A39), Tocumwal, at the NSW / VIC Border
- Miscellaneous:
- Continues as Cunningham Highway (A39) in Queensland and as Goulburn Valley Highway (A39) in Victoria
- Suburbs, Towns & Localities Along Route:
- Tocumwal, Finley, Jerilderie, Narrandera, Grong Grong, Ardlethan, West Wyalong, Wyalong, Forbes, Parkes, Peak Hill, Tomingley, Dubbo, Gilgandra, Tooraweenah, Coonabarabran, Narrabri, Edgeroi, Bellata, Gurley, Moree and Boggabilla
Route Numbering:
- Current: A39
- Multiplexed with: A20 B55 B58 B64 B76 B94
- Former: 39 39
- Road Authority Internal Classification: 1
- HW17
General Information:
The Newell Highway is the longest highway in NSW, stretching from the Victorian border at Tocumwal to the Queensland border. it's the economic backbone for freight and livestock transporters, tourism operators, caravaners and holiday makers, emergency services, government, media and business owners. 2 The majority of the route is undivided roadway, with various overtaking sections where required.
The Newell Highway is named after HH Newell. He was the first commissioner for Main Roads in New South Wales. He passed away in 1941. 3 Prior to his appointment to the newly formed Main Roads Board on March 9, 1925, he was the District Engineer at the Wollongong branch of the Department of Public Works. 4
Multiplexes along the route include:
- A20 (Sturt Hwy), for 700 m, at Gillenbah.
- B55 (Castlereagh Hwy), for 1.2 km, at Gilgandra
- B58 (Riverina Hwy), for 150 m, at Finley.
- B64 (Mid Western Hwy), for 37 km, between West Wyalong and Caragabal.
- B76 (Gwydir Hwy), for 2 km, at Moree.
- B94 (Burley Griffin Way), for 18 km, between Mirrool and Ardlethan.
History:
- 1930s: Aerial investigations carried out to establish the route of the Newell Hwy. 4
- 1938: Route of Newell Highway proclaimed. The route chosen generally followed existing roads, but 2 sections between Narrandera and Wyalong, and also between Coonabarabran and Narrabri required fresh construction. 4
- June 1946: Work commenced on a 69 mile section of highway between Coonabarabran and Narrabri. 4
- 1949: Construction completed between Coonabarabran and Narrabri. 4
- 1950s: Bituminous sealing completed between Finley and Narrandera, plus a deviation near Jerilderie to bypass 2 railway crossings and 2 deviations were constructed between Jerilderie and Narranderra to avoid flood prone areas. Bituminous sealing also occurred on improved alignments between Narrandera and Forbes, between Forbes and Dubbo and also north of Dubbo. 4
- 1969: Work begins to complete bituminous sealing along highway length. 4
- August 1973: Sealed surface completed along entire Newell Highway. The last section to be done was between Moree and Boggabilla. 4
- 2005: Commencement of bypass works at Ardlethan and deviation at Gowang near Wallumburrawang Creek.
- November 2009: Work begins on the construction of turn lanes and junction upgrades at Gawnes Road at Grong Grong, Murrell Creek Road at Ardlethan, Bartels Lane at Alleena and Storms Lane at Alleena. 5
- 1 December 2009: Reduction of Newell Hwy speed limit from 110 km/h outside urban areas to 100 km/h. 6
- April 2010: Trial begins of a new style of centre line markings. The trial areas were setup at 12 km north of Parkes and 15 km north of West Wyalong. Each trial section on the Newell Highway is about five kilometres long. 7
- 13 December 2010: The new bridge over the Mehi River was officially opened to traffic. Following the opening of the bridge traffic was switched onto the northern section of the Moree town centre bypass via the Gwydir Highway connection. 8
- 3 August 2015: Stage 2 of the Moree Bypass to traffic. This section is 1.8 km long and is located between Frome St and Alice St. 9
- February 2018: Grong Grong Bypassed.
- 1 August 2022: The first phase of the New Dubbo Bridge project commenced. The new bridge forms part of a second high level crossing over the Macquarie River and redirects freight traffic further from the Dubbo CBD. 10
- November 2025: Completion of the Parkes bypass. A bypass of the town had been planned since the 1960s. 11 The project involved relocating the Newell Highway about two kilometres west of the previous alignment, between Maguire Road to the north and Barkers Road to the south. The entire bypass is 10.5 km in length. 12
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1 NSW Government, Transport for NSW, Schedule of Classified Roads And State and Regional Roads, July 2022.
2 NSW Government, Roads and Traffic Authority, Road Projects, Western Region, Newell Highway.
3 NSW Government, Department of Main Roads, Main Roads of New South Wales brochure.
4 NSW Government, Department of Main Roads, The Roadmakers, A History of Main Roads in New South Wales, ISBN 0 7240 0439 4.
5 Australian Government, Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Media Release, Work Underway On Newell Highway Blackspots, 16 November 2009.
6 NSW Government, Roads & Traffic Authority, Rules & Regulations, Newell Highway Reduced Speed Limit.
7 NSW Government, Roads & Traffic Authority, NSW Centre for Road Safety, Downloads, Newell Highway centreline marking trial display.
8 NSW Government, Transport for NSW, Media Statement, Final stage of Moree Bypass opens to traffic six months early, 03 August 2015.
9 NSW Government, Roads & Traffic Authority, Projects, Western Region, Moree Town Centre Bypass.
10 NSW Government, Transport for NSW, Projects, Newell Highway Upgrade - New Dubbo Bridge project, 09 April 2026.
11 NSW Government, Transport for NSW, Projects, Parkes Bypass, 25 Mar 2026.
12 Georgiou Strabag Group, Projects, New South Wales, Newell Highway Upgrade – Parkes Bypass.