Which Australian highway connects Adelaide to Darwin?

The Australian highway connecting Adelaide to Darwin is the Stuart Highway.

The Stuart Highway is the main north–south road through central mainland Australia. Its route runs between Darwin in the Northern Territory and Port Augusta in South Australia, where travelers can continue toward Adelaide via other connected highways. It passes through Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, crossing some of the country’s most remote terrain.

The highway is named after Scottish-born explorer John McDouall Stuart, who became the first European to cross the Australian continent from south to north. The modern road broadly follows the corridor of his expedition. It was fully sealed in February 1987, making the route more practical for long-distance freight and travel.

The question sometimes causes confusion because Adelaide is not the highway’s southern endpoint: Port Augusta is. The Stuart Highway connects with the Augusta Highway and the Eyre Highway there, forming part of the wider journey to Adelaide. In the Northern Territory, sections carry route numbers A1 and A87.