Outback Way – Plenty Highway

The Northern Territory Government is connecting the Territory by upgrading and sealing the Plenty Highway

The works form part of the Outback Way – NT Corridor program, jointly funded by the Australian Government and Northern Territory Government.

The Outback Way is a 2720 km route connecting Laverton, Western Australia to Winton, Queensland via Alice Springs. Progressive upgrades to the Outback Way will ultimately deliver a fully sealed east-west transport link through Central Australia.

In Central Australia, the Plenty Highway forms a key section of the Outback Way, with staged upgrades planned along the 499 km road. Current road conditions vary from unsealed, single lane seal and dual lane sealed of varying standards.

Current Status

Staged upgrades include:

• 27 km dual lane seal currently under construction
• Concrete causeways at the crossings of the Plenty and Marshall rivers and Bonya Creek under construction
• 63 km dual lane seal in final design stage
• 80 km single land seal requiring widening to a dual lane seal
• 329 km of road upgrades still in planning stage

A total of 155 km dual lane seal upgrades is due to be completed by January 2026.

These works are part of the Outback Way – NT Corridor upgrades under the Australian Government’s Infrastructure Investment Program, which will enhance safety, reduce travel times, lower freight costs and support economic opportunities across the Northern Territory.

Remote NT residents will benefit from improved flood immunity and connectivity to essential services unavailable locally.

Contact

For more information on this project, contact Department of Logistics and Infrastructure (DLI) Regional Director, Gunalan Sivachelvan on phone 08 8951 5551 or email gunalan.sivachelvan@nt.gov.au

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