Plenty Highway

The Plenty Highway is a 498 km outback mostly unsealed road in the Northern Territory of Australia between the Stuart Highway and north-western Queensland.

Route description
The road begins at a turnoff from the Stuart Highway 68 km north of Alice Springs, and finishes at Tobermorey Homestead on the Northern Territory/Queensland border. It then continues for another 249 km to Boulia in Queensland, as the Donohue Highway.

The first 170 km from the Stuart Highway is sealed. Of the next 108 km to Jervois Homestead all bar 10 km is unsealed as is the rest of the track to the Queensland Border. From the Queensland Border to Boulia the final 128 km is sealed with another 5 km east of the border. Information about its condition may be obtained from the Harts Range police station, 112 km from the Stuart Highway.

East of Jervois Homestead, the road is formed earth, deteriorating to rocks and bulldust as it nears Tobermorey, 213 km from Jervois Homestead. The road north to Urandangi and thence to Mount Isa bears left just before Tobermorey.

Road condition
The worst sections of the road are in the Northern Territory, with deep potholes and bulldust. On the Queensland side of the border the road has had significant upgrades and is of a hard pack gravel surface. It is 249 km from Tobermorey to Boulia and good camping may be found at the Georgina River, at about the 125 km mark.

Fuel and food may be obtained at Gemtree, Atitjere community, Jervois Homestead and Boulia. As of June 2018, fuel and camping is available at Tobermorey. Road trains up to 53 m in length use both highways.

Upgrades
The Northern Australia Roads Program announced in 2016 included the following project for the Plenty Highway.

Progressive sealing and flood immunity
The project to progressively seal and provide flood immunity improvements was expected to be complete in late 2021 at a total cost of $25 million.