Roe Highway

Roe Highway is a 35-kilometre-long (22 mi) limited-access highway and partial freeway in Perth, Western Australia, linking Kewdale with the city's north-eastern and south-western suburbs. The northern terminus is at Reid Highway and Great Northern Highway in Middle Swan, and the southern terminus is with Murdoch Drive at the Kwinana Freeway interchange in Bibra Lake. Roe Highway, in addition to Reid Highway, form State Route 3, a partial ring road around the outer suburbs of the Perth metropolitan area. Roe Highway also forms part of National Highway 94 from Great Eastern Highway Bypass to Great Eastern Highway, and National Highway 95 from Great Eastern Highway to Great Northern Highway.

Although planning for Roe Highway's route began in the 1950s, construction on the highway's first segment only began in 1981, which was opened in 1983, concurrent with the construction of Tonkin Highway and development of the Kewdale industrial area. The highway remains a key heavy vehicle route in the Perth metropolitan area. In the 1980s and 1990s, most of the highway's interchanges with other roads were constructed as at-grade intersections with traffic lights, as were Perth's other arterial highways also constructed during that time. From 2002 to 2006, the 20-kilometre-long (12 mi) section of the highway from Tonkin Highway to Kwinana Freeway was constructed as a continuous freeway, with grade-separated interchanges and free traffic flow, and since 2012 several remaining at-grade intersections of the rest of the highway have been grade-separated. Six at-grade traffic-light controlled intersections remain on the highway today.

Planning provisions have proposed for Roe Highway to be extended from its current south-western terminus in Bibra Lake towards Fremantle since the 1950s. These plans have been controversial amongst conservationist and community groups due to the highway's proposed route through the environmentally sensitive Beeliar Wetlands. The Western Australian state government commenced construction on the first stage of an extension of Roe Highway from Kwinana Freeway to Stock Road (known as Roe Highway Stage 8) in December 2016; construction of the extension was suspended in March 2017 following a change of government in the 2017 state election. The new government has since reconfigured the extension to curve northwards to link with Murdoch Drive instead. Construction on this project commenced in 2018 and was completed in April 2020.

Roe Highway is part of State Route 3, Perth's partial outer ring road, though it also carries National Highways 94 and 95 for parts of the highway. A dual carriageway limited-access highway maintained by Main Roads Western Australia, most junctions along the road are grade-separated interchanges, though some are at-grade traffic-light controlled intersections; the 20 kilometres (12 mi) section between Tonkin Highway and the Kwinana Freeway (a little more than half the highway's entire length) is a continuous freeway.

The speed limit for the highway is mostly 100 kilometres per hour (62 mph); however, the section between Great Northern Highway and Morrison Road carries a 90 kilometres per hour (56 mph), and it is 80 kilometres per hour (50 mph) at the Great Eastern Highway Bypass intersection. Otherwise, the speed limit near at-grade intersections is 70 kilometres per hour (43 mph). A principal shared path (PSP) exists alongside most of Roe Highway, from Kalamunda Road to Kwinana Freeway.

Roe Highway commences in Middle Swan within the City of Swan local government area (LGA) at Great Northern Highway at a traffic light controlled intersection as an eastern continuation of Reid Highway. Upon the highway's commencement it is carrying both State Route 3 (continuing from Reid Highway) and National Highway 95 (continuing from Great Northern Highway to the north). The highway then curves to the south, reaching Toodyay Road 1.4 kilometres (0.87 mi) later. From there the highway briefly borders the suburb of Stratton before entering Midvale, reaching another traffic light controlled intersection with Morrison Road 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) later. Only another 900 metres (3,000 ft) takes the highway to Great Eastern Highway at a modified diamond interchange with a northbound to eastbound loop ramp to cater for heavy vehicles. At this interchange, National Highway 95 terminates here, and simultaneously gains the National Highway 94 allocation, continuing from Great Eastern Highway to the east.

Following the Great Eastern Highway interchange Roe Highway is entirely within the suburb of Bellevue, getting to Clayton Street only 800 metres (2,600 ft) further on. It is a half diamond interchange with only a northbound exit and southbound entry ramp. Not any further from that interchange, the highway crosses the Helena River, sending the highway into the suburb of Hazelmere, passing under Bushmead Road, and reaching the Great Eastern Highway Bypass another 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) south of Clayton Street. At this intersection National Highway 95 continues west on the Bypass. After 1.7 kilometres (1.1 mi), Roe Highway enters the City of Kalamunda LGA, bordering the suburbs of High Wycombe and Maida Vale and then reaches Kalamunda Road at a dogbone interchange 1.1 kilometres (0.68 mi) later. Another 1.3 kilometres (0.81 mi) takes the highway to another half diamond interchange at Maida Vale Road, also with only northbound exit and southbound entrance ramps. 2.4 kilometres (1.5 mi) later, Roe Highway reaches Berkshire Road at a diamond interchange with a "tennis ball" configuration, with traffic cutting through the roundabouts rather than circulating around them. At the same time the highway enters the suburb of Forrestfield. Another 2.3 kilometres (1.4 mi) takes the highway to Tonkin Highway. This major junction was originally a diamond interchange favouring Tonkin Highway, but is now a partial freeway-to-freeway interchange, with the left turns from Roe Highway free-flowing. There are plans to upgrade this junction into being a fully free-flowing interchange in the future.

Following the interchange at Tonkin Highway, Roe Highway now forms the boundaries of the City of Belmont and Kalamunda LGAs to the west and east, respectively, as well as their respective suburbs, Kewdale and Wattle Grove, before crossing freight railway lines and briefly entering the suburbs of East Cannington and Welshpool within the vicinity of the Orrong Road and Welshpool Road East interchange, within the City of Gosnells LGA, 1.3 kilometres (0.81 mi) further south from Tonkin Highway. Within this stretch the highway is four lanes southbound and three lanes northbound. Roe Highway is thereafter within the suburb of Beckenham, with the freight railway line travelling alongside the highway's eastern side. Roe Highway reaches Kenwick Link (a bypass of Albany Highway) 4.2 kilometres (2.6 mi) further south. Midway through these interchanges, the highway passes under Brixton Street and the bypassed section of Albany Highway. A further 600 metres (2,000 ft) southwest of the interchange takes the freeway to the Canning River, which Roe Highway crosses over as the Djarlgarra Bridge, after which the highway is now bordering the suburbs of Langford and Thornlie. Roe Highway passes under Spencer Road before reaching Nicholson Road, 2.6 kilometres (1.6 mi) west of the river. The highway, which is now within the City of Canning and bordering the residential suburb of Parkwood and industrial suburb of Canning Vale, reaches Willeri Drive 2.6 kilometres (1.6 mi) further west, after which it is now bordering Willetton to the north, and then reaches South Street 2 kilometres (1.2 mi) further southwest. Following this interchange Roe Highway is now within the City of Cockburn and bordering the suburbs of Leeming and Jandakot, reaching Karel Avenue 3.1 kilometres (1.9 mi) further west. After 900 metres (3,000 ft), Roe Highway reaches a partial combination interchange (originally a trumpet interchange) at the junction of the Kwinana Freeway (this interchange lacks southbound-to-westbound and eastbound-to-northbound movements) in Bibra Lake; Roe Highway terminates at this interchange, continuing northwards as Murdoch Drive.