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Menang Drive Western Australia
General information
Type	Road
Length	16.6 km (10 mi)
Opened	2007 (first section) 2024 (entire road)
Route number(s)	State Route 103
Major junctions
Northeast end	Chester Pass Road (National Route 1) King River
	Albany Highway (State Route 30) South Coast Highway (National Route 1) Hanrahan Road / Lower Denmark Road / Frenchman Bay Road
South end	Princess Royal Drive Mount Melville
Location(s)
Major suburbs	Willyung, McKail, Gledhow, Mount Elphinstone

Menang Drive, also known as the Albany Ring Road, is a 16.6-kilometre-long (10.3 mi) expressway-standard ring road which frames the northern and western suburbs of the city of Albany in Western Australia.

The road provides an uninterrupted free-flowing heavy haulage route from Chester Pass Road in the northeast to Princess Royal Drive and the Port of Albany in the south, in the process connecting the four major access roads that exit to the north and west of the city.

History

Planning for the what was then known as the Albany Ring Road commenced in 1997, however it was not until 24 February 2006 when the then Minister for Planning and Infrastructure, Alannah MacTiernan, announced $10.4 million in funding was awarded for the funding of Stage One.

Stage One

Stage One, which consisted of the section connecting Chester Pass Road to Albany Highway, commenced construction after an opening ceremony was held on 28 March 2006 Construction of the 6.5 km section took 13 months to complete and was opened on 27 April 2007. At the same time the road was renamed Menang Drive, which loosely translates to "southerners" and was named in tribute to the Mineng indigenous group that inhabited the area.

Stages Two & Three

In 2012, $1 million in joint funding between the state and federal governments was made available for the planning and detailing of Menang Drive down to the Port of Albany. This work was undertaken between 2012 and 2015

On 13 July 2020, it was announced that construction of the $175 million Stage Two extension would commence in September 2020. The scope consisted of the conversion of the intersection with Albany Highway to a grade-separated interchange as well as an extension to Lancaster Road. The interchange opened to traffic in April 2022.

The final designs for Stage Three were issued on 1 September 2021 and involved modifications to the interchanges with South Coast Highway and Hanrahan/Frenchman Bay Roads. Construction commenced in March 2022 with the full extension opened to traffic on 19 May 2024

In February 2024, it was announced that the intersection between Menang Drive and Chester Pass Road would be made partially grade-separated, with the movement from Chester Pass Road southbound to Menang Drive westbound moved onto a flyover. The $37 million project commenced construction in late 2024.

See also

Australian Roads portal

• Mandurah Road - a partial ring road constructed around the city of Mandurah.
• Robertson Drive and Wilman Wadandi Highway, the inner and outer Ring Roads that bypass the city of Bunbury.

References

1. "Albany Ring Road" (PDF). Main Roads WA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 October 2024. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
2. MacTiernan, Alannah. "$10.4million contract awarded for Albany Ring Road stage one". Government of Western Australia. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
3. "Stage one of ring road begins". ABC News Australia. 29 March 2006. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
4. "Stage one of Albany Ring Road opens to traffic - with a new name". Government of Western Australia. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
5. Peake, Grant. "A Meeting of Two Worlds". Albany Historical Society. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
6. Buswell, Troy. "Funding for Albany Ring Road planning". Government of Western Australia. Retrieved 19 March 2012.
7. Saffioti, Rita. "Albany Ring Road reaches new milestone for WA's Great Southern region". Government of Western Australia. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
8. Saffioti, Rita. "Joint media statement - Albany Ring Road Phase 2 designs unveiled following community feedback". Government of Western Australia. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
9. Saffioti, Rita. "Joint Media Statement - Work on final section of Albany Ring Road underway". Government of Western Australia. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
10. "Albany Ring Road Project May 2024 Update" (PDF). Main Roads WA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 October 2024. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
11. (PDF). Main Roads WA. Archived from the original (PDF) on 23 October 2024. Retrieved 16 December 2024. {{cite web}}: Check |archive-url= value (help)

v t e Road infrastructure in Western Australia
Freeways	Graham Farmer Freeway Kwinana Freeway Mitchell Freeway
Metropolitan highways	Albany Highway Brookton Highway Canning Highway Great Eastern Highway (Bypass) Great Northern Highway Leach Highway Reid Highway Roe Highway South Western Highway Stirling Highway Tonkin Highway West Coast Highway
Highways and major roads	Albany Highway Brand Highway Brockman Highway Brookton Highway Bussell Highway Coalfields Road Coolgardie–Esperance Highway Dampier Highway Derby Highway Eyre Highway Forrest Highway Geraldton–Mount Magnet Road Goldfields Highway Great Eastern Highway Great Northern Highway Great Southern Highway Indian Ocean Drive Mandjoogoordap Drive Manuwarra Red Dog Highway Menang Drive Muir Highway North West Coastal Highway Old Coast Road Robertson Drive South Coast Highway South Western Highway Vasse Highway Victoria Highway Wilman Wadandi Highway
Outback tracks	Anne Beadell Highway Buntine Highway Canning Stock Route Cape Leveque Road Connie Sue Highway Duncan Road Gary Highway Gary Junction Road Gibb River Road Great Central Road Gunbarrel Highway Kalumburu Road Sandy Blight Junction Road Talawana Track Tanami Road
Lists	Highways Major roads Gascoyne Goldfields–Esperance Great Southern Kimberley Mid West Perth Pilbara South West Wheatbelt Road routes Tourist Drives

• Streets in Albany, Western Australia
• Highways in rural Western Australia