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Great Ocean Road
The Great Ocean Road is an Australian National Heritage-listed 240-kilometre (150 mi) stretch of road along the south-eastern coast of Australia, between the Victorian towns of Torquay and Allansford. Built by returned soldiers between 1919 and 1932, and dedicated to soldiers killed during World War I, the road is the world's largest war memorial. Winding through varying terrain along the coast, and providing access to several prominent landmarks, including the Twelve Apostles limestone stack formations, the road is an important tourist attraction.
The city of Geelong, close to Torquay, experiences great benefit from Australian and international visitors to the road, with Geelong Otway Tourism affirming it as an invaluable asset. In 2008, the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria (RACV) listed the road as the state's top tourism experience in its Victoria 101 survey, based on places that members of the public would recommend to visitors.
The Great Ocean Road starts at Torquay and runs westward to finish at Allansford, near Warrnambool. The road is two lanes (one in each direction), and has a speed limit which varies between 50 km/h and 100 km/h.
A prime tourist attraction, much of the road hugs the coastline along what is known, east of the Otway Ranges, as the Surf Coast and, west of Cape Otway, as the Shipwreck Coast. It provides extensive views over Bass Strait and the Southern Ocean.
The road runs through rainforests, as well as alongside beaches and cliffs composed of limestone and sandstone, which are susceptible to erosion. The road travels via Anglesea, Lorne, Apollo Bay, and Port Campbell, the latter being notable for its natural limestone and sandstone rock formations, including Loch Ard Gorge, The Grotto, London Bridge and The Twelve Apostles. The stretch of the Great Ocean Road nearer to Torquay closely follows the coast, with some sheer cliffs on the seaward side. Road signs warn motorists of possible rockfalls.
The Great Ocean Road was first planned towards the end of World War I, when Chairman of the Country Roads Board, William Calder, asked the State War Council for funds to be provided for returned soldiers to work on roads in sparsely populated areas in the Western District. At the time, the rugged south-west coast of Victoria was accessible only by sea or rough bush track. It was envisaged that the road would connect isolated settlements on the coast and become a vital transport link for the timber industry and tourism.
Surveying of the road, tentatively titled the South Coast Road, started in 1918. It was suggested that it run from Barwon Heads in the east, follow the coast west around Cape Otway, and end near Warrnambool. In 1918, the Great Ocean Road Trust was formed as a private company, under the helm of president Howard Hitchcock. The company managed to secure £81,000 in capital from private subscriptions and borrowing, with Hitchcock himself contributing £3000. The money was to be repaid by charging drivers a toll until the debt was cleared, and the road would then be gifted to the state.
Construction began on 19 September 1919. Approximately 3,000 returned servicemen worked on the project, which was a war memorial for servicemen killed in World War I. The advance survey team progressed through dense scrub at a rate of approximately three kilometres a month. Construction was mostly by hand, using explosives, pick and shovel, wheelbarrows, and some small machinery, and was at times perilous, with several workers being killed. The final sections, along steep coastal cliffs, were the most difficult to work on. Anecdotal evidence from ABC archives in 1982 suggested workers would rest detonators on their knees during travel, because it gave the explosives the softest ride.
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Great Ocean Road
The Great Ocean Road is an Australian National Heritage-listed 240-kilometre (150 mi) stretch of road along the south-eastern coast of Australia, between the Victorian towns of Torquay and Allansford. Built by returned soldiers between 1919 and 1932, and dedicated to soldiers killed during World War I, the road is the world's largest war memorial. Winding through varying terrain along the coast, and providing access to several prominent landmarks, including the Twelve Apostles limestone stack formations, the road is an important tourist attraction.
The city of Geelong, close to Torquay, experiences great benefit from Australian and international visitors to the road, with Geelong Otway Tourism affirming it as an invaluable asset. In 2008, the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria (RACV) listed the road as the state's top tourism experience in its Victoria 101 survey, based on places that members of the public would recommend to visitors.
The Great Ocean Road starts at Torquay and runs westward to finish at Allansford, near Warrnambool. The road is two lanes (one in each direction), and has a speed limit which varies between 50 km/h and 100 km/h.
A prime tourist attraction, much of the road hugs the coastline along what is known, east of the Otway Ranges, as the Surf Coast and, west of Cape Otway, as the Shipwreck Coast. It provides extensive views over Bass Strait and the Southern Ocean.
The road runs through rainforests, as well as alongside beaches and cliffs composed of limestone and sandstone, which are susceptible to erosion. The road travels via Anglesea, Lorne, Apollo Bay, and Port Campbell, the latter being notable for its natural limestone and sandstone rock formations, including Loch Ard Gorge, The Grotto, London Bridge and The Twelve Apostles. The stretch of the Great Ocean Road nearer to Torquay closely follows the coast, with some sheer cliffs on the seaward side. Road signs warn motorists of possible rockfalls.
The Great Ocean Road was first planned towards the end of World War I, when Chairman of the Country Roads Board, William Calder, asked the State War Council for funds to be provided for returned soldiers to work on roads in sparsely populated areas in the Western District. At the time, the rugged south-west coast of Victoria was accessible only by sea or rough bush track. It was envisaged that the road would connect isolated settlements on the coast and become a vital transport link for the timber industry and tourism.
Surveying of the road, tentatively titled the South Coast Road, started in 1918. It was suggested that it run from Barwon Heads in the east, follow the coast west around Cape Otway, and end near Warrnambool. In 1918, the Great Ocean Road Trust was formed as a private company, under the helm of president Howard Hitchcock. The company managed to secure £81,000 in capital from private subscriptions and borrowing, with Hitchcock himself contributing £3000. The money was to be repaid by charging drivers a toll until the debt was cleared, and the road would then be gifted to the state.
Construction began on 19 September 1919. Approximately 3,000 returned servicemen worked on the project, which was a war memorial for servicemen killed in World War I. The advance survey team progressed through dense scrub at a rate of approximately three kilometres a month. Construction was mostly by hand, using explosives, pick and shovel, wheelbarrows, and some small machinery, and was at times perilous, with several workers being killed. The final sections, along steep coastal cliffs, were the most difficult to work on. Anecdotal evidence from ABC archives in 1982 suggested workers would rest detonators on their knees during travel, because it gave the explosives the softest ride.