Tanami Road Upgrade

Tanami Road is 1,035 km long, linking Alice Springs (NT) to Great Northern Highway, near Halls Creek (WA). The 313 km long section in WA is unsealed and is a local road under the care and control of the Shire of Halls Creek. 

In addition to being an intrastate route, it provides access to several remote Aboriginal communities, mine sites and tourist attractions.

While much of the road is formed and gravel sheeted, large sections of road become corrugated and difficult to travel on throughout the year. It's also common for the road to be closed and damaged during the wet season, requiring extensive repairs most years. 

The plan is to:

• Progressively upgrade and seal Tanami Road 
• Improve drainage, including installation of culverts and floodways
• Construct bridges
• Provide roadside facilities such as rest areas

Community engagement

Consultation with key stakeholders was undertaken prior to project commencement.

Following on from several community presentations in Halls Creek, Main Roads along with the Shire of Halls Creek visited the three communities of Billiluna, Balgo and Mulan in June 2022 to discuss the project and provide information on business and employment opportunities.

Initial briefings were provided with the three native title groups directly affected by the road – Jaru, Koongie-Elvire and Tjurubalan, who all indicated their support for the project. Main Roads continues to meet with the Traditional owner groups as required

A Delivery Strategy workshop was held with a range of community stakeholders in Halls Creek in November 2023. The group supported a long- term delivery strategy over 8 - 10 years to maximise local involvement in the delivery of the project and provide sustainable employment and business opportunities for local Aboriginal people. The Community reference group also provided advice on what were considered to be key project objectives and outcomes, as well as what should be included in the scope of works to achieve these objectives. A set of Key Performance Indicators will be developed and further meetings are planned with the Community Reference Group during the life of the project to report on project progress in achieving the project objectives.

Aboriginal Participation

Project Aboriginal Participation targets have been set in line with other projects being delivered in the Kimberley region.

Several meetings have been held with East Kimberley Aboriginal training and employment organisations to identify opportunities to grow Aboriginal Engagement in the delivery of East Kimberley Road and bridge projects.

Certificate II training courses were completed in Balgo in late 2022, while a Certificate III course was completed in Halls Creek in April, building people’s skills to participate in the delivery of the project.

As at November 2023, more than 51 per cent of the hours worked on the project were by Aboriginal people.

 Media statements

• Joint media statement - Construction begins on Tanami Road - 23 June 2023

 Project Updates

• Project Update - August 2023 - PDF (641 KB)
• Project Update - August 2022 - PDF (2.04MB)

 Funding