Projects

Great Ocean Road and inland routes upgrades

Built by First World War (WWI) diggers and almost 100 years old, the iconic Great Ocean Road is being upgraded to ensure future generations can enjoy it as much as we do.

Project status:

Underway

Overview

The Victorian Government has invested $255 million to the Great Ocean Road and its inland routes.

This includes $140 million to upgrade and improve the resilience of the Great Ocean Road and another $115 million to upgrade inland routes between the Great Ocean Road and the Princes Highway, which are vital connections for tourism, freight and local communities.

Update - May 2026

Works to improve safety on five key inland routes has been completed, providing smoother and safer journeys for all drivers.

What we delivered

The rehabilitation and safety works involved:

the installation of electronic school zone signs on Deans Marsh- Lorne Road near Deans Marsh Primary School
pavement rehabilitation and widening, and the installation of new safety barriers, on Princetown Road, Princetown and New Irrewillipe Road, Irrewillipe
pavement rehabilitation and widening on Colac-Lavers Hill Road at Barongarook
the installation of new safety barriers on Birregurra-Forrest Road at Barwon Downs.

Program of works 2025-26

Our current program of projects in delivery in 2025/26:

Bridge upgrades
- Great Ocean Road
  - Skenes Creek bridge
  - Latrobe Creek bridge
Road rehabilitation
Inland routes
- Kennedy Creek bridge
- Scotts Creek bridge
Geotechnical program
- Stabilisation works:
  - Colac-Lavers Hill Road
  - Forrest-Apollo Bay Road
  - Great Ocean Road, between Kennett Creek and Grey River
  - Timboon-Port Campbell Road
  - Cobden-Port Campbell Road
- Erosion control rock armour walls at:
  - Kennett Creek
  - Petticoat Creek

Road and safety upgrades

We’re creating a safer road environment on the Great Ocean Road and its inland routes through various safety treatments, including:

We’re rehabilitating sections of key roads, including the Great Ocean Road at Nullawarre, Allansford, Peterborough and Mepunga; Princetown Road, Winchelsea-Deans Marsh Road, Timboon-Nullawarre Road, Birregurra-Forest Road, Cobden-Port Campbell Road, Colac-Lavers Hill Road and Forrest-Apollo Bay Road.

We have completed pedestrian and safety upgrades in Aireys Inlet, Jan Juc, Anglesea, Fairhaven and Bellbrae. For more information on these projects, visit the Great Ocean Road pedestrian and safety improvements page.

Bridge upgrades

Along the Great Ocean Road and its inland routes, we have delivered bridge upgrades and strengthening projects to improve safety and connectivity.

Completed bridge projects on the Great Ocean Road include:

Gellibrand River bridge
Sheoak Creek bridge
Saint George River bridge
Calder River bridge
Ford River bridge
Spout Creek bridge
Moggs Creek bridge barrier painting
Wye River bridge

Traffic impacts

We are working at various locations as we continue to upgrade and improve the resilience of the Great Ocean Road and its inland routes. Vital works to ensure the road remains strong include road rebuilding, bridge strengthening, geotechnical works, and safety upgrades.

We'll make every effort to minimise disruption to traffic while works are completed.

Our work sites may include any of the following traffic management:

lane closures
reduced speed limit
traffic lights or controllers
electronic message signs
detours.

Please look out for changed traffic conditions, plan ahead and allow extra time for your journey.

Emergency works

In the case of unforeseen events, emergency works may occur to ensure the safety of the roads and road users. Please be aware of signs and drive to changed conditions, which may include reduced speed limits and temporary lane closures.

History of the Great Ocean Road

Thursday 19 September 2019 marked 100 years from the day WWI diggers commenced construction on the Great Ocean Road.

To celebrate the centenary, we proudly supported an event series in September 2019 from Great Ocean Road Tourism, which featured a new documentary, gala screenings, pop-up cinemas in shipping containers and new art and augmented reality activations from Torquay to Apollo Bay.

The documentary, titled ‘The Story of the Road’, showcased how the road came to be—detailing its construction by WWI returned servicemen and their lives as they built the now 243-kilometre-long road, joining the isolated towns lining the western Victorian coastline.

We now use modern technology to protect and improve this historic coast route, to ensure it remains strong and safe for future generations.