Current Route
The western section (also known as Princes Freeway West or Geelong Road) starts from Altona at the West Gate Interchange, where the Western Ring Road and the old Geelong Road can be accessed by off ramps, and ends at Geelong. This section ranges from six lanes (three in each direction) between Geelong and Werribee, to ten lanes near the Ring Road interchange. It is a high quality freeway with a speed limit of 100 km/h.
The eastern section (also known as Princes Freeway East) starts from Berwick, a four lane (two lanes in each direction) divided freeway. There are also several highway standard at-grade intersections, most notably between Nar Nar Goon and Longwarry. These intersections are speed limited to 100 km/h, with the only 110 km/h section on the freeway from Longwarry to Morwell. However, traffic still travel through the towns of Yarragon and Trafalgar, therefore urban speed limits apply to these towns (between 60 and 80 km/h) where the road reverts to the Princes Highway (though planning for bypasses of these towns are underway).
The western and eastern sections are connected together through the Melbourne suburbs by the West Gate Freeway, CityLink Tollway and the Monash Freeway. These five sections of road together constitute the route M1 which is part of National Highway 1.
The Princes Freeway subsumes and bypasses most sections of the older Princes Highway. Former bypassed sections of the Princes Highway are generally signed with a National Route Alt 1 shield (within eastern Melbourne) or designated from C101 to C104 and C109.
In March 2010 it was announced by the State Government that trucks would be banned from the right-hand lane along a 38-kilometre section of freeway between Geelong and Melbourne. Suggestions of a ban began in 2005 but increased after the fatal 2007 Burnley Tunnel fire that killed three people. The ban was put into place from 1 July 2010 between Kororoit Creek Road, Altona, and Avalon Road, Lara and covers all heavy vehicles weighing more than 4.5 tonnes, except buses and caravans. A fine of $358 applies to those breaking the rules, the ban being a trial before a full roll-out on the other major roads in the state.
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