Length:

14 km

Termini:

Northern: The Grand Pde (Metroad 1) and President Av (Metroad 1), Brighton-Le-Sands

Southern: Princes Hwy (Metroad 1), Gymea

Suburbs, Towns & Localities Along Route:

Gymea, Miranda, Caringbah, Taren Point, Sans Souci, Ramsgate Beach, Monterey and Brighton-Le-Sands

Current: None

Former: 64

Road Authority Internal Classification: ¹

MR194 (Sans Souci to Brighton-Le-Sands)

MR199 (Caringbah to Sans Souci)

MR227 (Gymea to Caringbah)

General Information:

State Route 64 was an important alternative route to the Princes Highway and originally included Flinders Street, South Dowling Street, Southern Cross Drive, Wentworth Avenue, Botany Road, Mill Pond Road and General Holmes Drive to The Grand Parade at Brighton-Le-Sands, connecting the Sydney central business district with Sydney's southern suburbs. ¹

The route was a mix of divided and undivided roads featuring 4 to 6 lanes in each direction and offering views of Botany Bay and Georges River between Caringbah and Brighton-Le-Sands. The route serviced residential, commercial and industrial zones.

The most striking feature of the route is the Captain Cook Bridge over Georges River, linking Taren Point with Sans Souci. Named after explorer Captain James Cook, who landed at nearby Kurnell on 29 April 1770, when navigating his way around Australia ², the bridge is 506 metres in length ³, and was originally intended to form part of the Southern Freeway (F6) extension linking the Illawarra with Sydney. Several road reservations still exist for this project throughout the area.

1911: Ferries begin operating between Taren Point and Sans Souci, crossing Georges River. ³

1916: A vehicular punt took cars between Taren Point and Sans Souci up until the Captain Cook Bridge was opened in 1965, replacing the punt. ³ The ferry, commonly known as Taren Point punt, carried 10 841 vehicles in the first six months of service. ⁴

1913: The stretch of road from Princes Highway, Gymea to Gerrale Street and Eloura Road, Cronulla, named Kingsway. ⁵

August 1930: The Main Roads Board advised the Sutherland Shire Council that Taren Point Road was proclaimed a main road. ⁶

1938: Trial of mercury vapour street lighting on Taren Point Road. ⁷

1959: Planning of the Captain Cook Bridge began when the then state government approved the construction as part of the overall plan for a Southern Expressway to link Sydney and Wollongong. Crossing the Georges River between Sans Souci and Taren Point, the bridge was to provide an alternate route through Sutherland Shire to Tom Uglys Bridge, located about 2 kilometres away, and had been in use since 1929 with traffic reaching saturation point just prior to the opening of Captain Cook Bridge. ⁴

1962: Construction commenced on Captain Cook Bridge over Georges River. ⁸

1964: Taren Point punt carried 240 000 vehicles during the final six months of the year. ⁴

29 May 1965: Captain Cook Bridge officially opened by the then Governor of NSW, Lieutenant-General Sir Eric Woodward. ⁷

1972: Installation of traffic signals at the corner Kingsway and Wandella Road, adjacent to Miranda Shopping Centre. ⁹

Gymea to Brighton-Le-Sands

Advance Directional Sign:

AD sign on Kingsway (unnumbered section), approaching Kingsway (former SR64) and Taren Point Rd (former SR64), Caringbah, January 2026. This sign formerly displayed a coverplate featuring the airport symbol, which has since been removed or has fallen off, exposing the SR64 shield..

Image © Paul Rands