SarinaâÂÂEtonâÂÂHampden Road is a non-continuous road route in the Mackay local government area of Queensland, Australia. It has four official names, SarinaâÂÂHomebush Road, EtonâÂÂHomebush Road, MarianâÂÂEton Road, and MarianâÂÂHampden Road. The entire route is signed as State Route 5. The four roads are state-controlled, with the following characteristics:
The road starts as SarinaâÂÂHomebush Road at an intersection with the Bruce Highway in . It runs west and southwest across Sarina as State Route 5, before turning northwest and passing between Sarina and . Next it runs between Munbura and before crossing Sunnyside and entering . Crossing Oakenden it turns north into , where it then turns northwest before reaching EtonâÂÂHomebush Road and Homebush Road at a T-junction. Homebush Road exits to the northeast and the road continues southwest as EtonâÂÂHomebush Road.
Leaving Homebush the road turns west and enters the northern part of Oakenden. Crossing Oakenden it runs northwest, southwest, west and northwest again before it enters , where it meets the Peak Downs Highway at a T-junction. The road turns northeast and runs concurrent with the highway until it reaches the exit to MarianâÂÂEton Road. It continues northwest and then west as MarianâÂÂEton Road before reaching the exit to MiraniâÂÂEton Road to the west. Here it turns north before entering . Continuing north it passes the exit to North Eton Road to the east.
Next the road enters where it turns northwest and then north again. In Marian it meets MackayâÂÂEungella Road at a T-junction. Here it turns east and runs concurrent with MackayâÂÂEungella Road until it reaches the exit to MarianâÂÂHampden Road, where it turns north and crosses the Pioneer River. It then enters and continues north to the Bruce Highway, where it ends.
The road is fully sealed to at least a two lane standard.
Sarina was originally known as Plane Creek, but took its present name from the Sarina Inlet which was in turn named after Sarina, the Greek mythological enchantress, by William Charles Borlase Wilson, a surveyor, some time before 1882.
The name Homebush is taken from a pastoral run name used by John Walker in 1866. Homebush Sugar Mill opened in 1883 and closed in 1922.
Originally known as the Defiance, the North Eton Central Mill commenced crushing sugarcane in 1888. It was the first sugar mill sponsored by the Queensland Government. In 1989, a number of sugar mills in the district merged to Mackay Sugar Limited, resulting in the closure of the North Eton mill.
The town name Marian comes from the name of the (now closed) Marian railway station, which in turn reportedly derived its name from a local property called Mary Ann. Marian sugar mill was built in 1885, later closed, and replaced by a new mill in 1894. Mackay Sugar operates the mill where over 2 million tonnes of sugar is crushed every year, making it one of the largest sugar mills in Australia.
This road intersects with the following state-controlled roads:
Homebush Road is a state-controlled regional road (number 516). It runs from the intersection of SarinaâÂÂHomebush Road and EtonâÂÂHomebush Road in to the Bruce Highway in , a distance of . This road has no major intersections.
MiraniâÂÂEton Road is a state-controlled district road (number 534), rated as a local road of regional significance (LRRS). It runs from MackayâÂÂEungella Road in to MarianâÂÂEton Road in , a distance of . This road has no major intersections.
North Eton Road is a state-controlled district road (number 5332), rated as a local road of regional significance (LRRS). It runs from the Peak Downs Highway in to MarianâÂÂEton Road in , a distance of . This road has no major intersections.
All distances are from Google Maps. The entire road is within the Mackay local government area.