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Top Priced Tolls
The most expensive and highest earning toll roads in Australia
Not everywhere in Australia has toll roads, but there are a number in New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland. These roads are helping commuters save time, and over time it can come at significant cost. But, just how much are toll roads really costing drivers, and how much revenue are toll operators raking in from people driving those routes and looking to shave a few minutes off their journey?
New research from the car insurance comparison experts at iSelect has analysed the cost of toll roads in Australia. The study reveals which tolls are the most expensive, which roads generate the highest revenue, how prices have changed over time, and which areas face the priciest journeys.
The most expensive toll roads in Australia per trip
Melbourne’s CityLink takes the title as Australia’s most expensive toll road, costing drivers up to $12.25 per trip. But Sydney drivers are hit hardest overall, with eight of the nation’s ten most expensive tolls, including the WestConnex M4 ($10.38), Eastern Distributor ($10.16) and NorthConnex ($10.15) all based in the area.
Melbourne’s CityLink comes at a higher cost due to its longer route between the airport and the city, while Sydney’s network of shorter toll roads can add up fast. If Sydney commuters use two or more of these toll roads each day, it can result in a weekly costs of more than $100.
The most expensive toll roads in Australia per kilometre
The Go Between Bridge in Brisbane tops the list as Australia’s most expensive toll per kilometre, charging $13.50/km. For a toll road that is only 300 metres long, its short distance makes it far less cost-efficient than any other toll road in the country.
Sydney’s Military Road E-Ramp, the shortest toll road in the country, comes in second at $10.35/km. Meanwhile, the Sydney Harbour Bridge is the third most expensive during peak hours, charging up to $4.41 per kilometre, with off-peak rates dropping to $2.40/km. The Cross City Tunnel in Sydney was ranked next at $3.41/km.
Longer tunnels such as the Eastern Distributor ($1.69/km), NorthConnex ($1.13/km) and Lane Cove Tunnel ($1.09/km), all located in New South Wales, show that distance brings better value, even when total tolls exceed $10.
The Sydney Harbour Bridge and Tunnel appear three times in the rankings because it uses time-of-day pricing, with separate peak, mid-peak and off-peak rates that create different per-kilometre costs. These variable charges mean drivers pay significantly more at peak times, pushing multiple versions of the same corridor into the list of Australia’s most expensive toll roads. As a result, the Harbour crossing is the only route to appear repeatedly, highlighting how dynamic pricing can dramatically change a driver’s cost per kilometre.
Across Australia, Queensland and New South Wales dominate the top 10 most expensive tolls, while Victoria is notably absent, reflecting its more moderate tolling. This pattern is also clear when looking at average toll costs per kilometre. Victoria stands at just $0.38/km, while Queensland leads at $2.45/km, followed closely by New South Wales at $2.23/km. Short city connectors in Brisbane and Sydney consistently cost the most per kilometre, whereas longer routes spread the cost over distance, giving drivers better value for their money.
The highest-earning toll roads in Australia
The highest-earning toll road in Australia is the WestConnex, which is projected to generate E$1.88 billion in total revenue for FY2025. Its earnings reflect its central role in Sydney’s transport network and ongoing expansion, as well as its high pricing.
The WestConnex also saw the strongest estimated revenue increase of 18.6% between financial year 2024 and 2025, reaching E$938 million in ownership revenue and cementing its status as Australia’s biggest single toll revenue generator. The WestConnex M4–M8 Link saw the greatest jump in revenue within the toll road, with ownership revenue soaring 77.9% from $95 million in FY2024 to $169 million in FY2025. This surge reflects the expansion and increasing use of Sydney’s inner-west toll network as new sections opened to traffic.
Victoria’s CityLink ranks second for the highest-earning toll roads, earning E$987 million, reflecting its high cost and popular use. Overall, Transurban dominates the Australian toll landscape, holding full and partial ownership of every top-earning toll road, which explains why the company earned a profit of $178 million last financial year. .
The rising cost of toll roads in Australia
The WestConnex M4 Motorway has recorded the fastest year-on-year toll rise in Australia, increasing by an average of 12.3% annually since 2015. Prices have increased from $4.56 in 2017 to $10.38 in 2025. In fact, all toll prices except for Sydney’s Harbour Bridge rose faster than inflation.
Queensland’s Legacy Way Tunnel follows with an average annual increase of 6.3%, rising from $3.90 in 2015 to $7.00 in 2025.
Other high-growth Sydney tolls include the WestConnex M5 East Motorway (+5.0%), M4–M8 Link (+5.0%), and NorthConnex (+4.9%), all steadily increasing due to inflation-linked pricing and growing traffic volumes.
Where toll road costs hit drivers the hardest
Where Sydney drivers pay the most for every minute saved from tolls
Sydney drivers face some of the highest toll premiums in Australia, with commuters who drive through the Ryde, Sutherland, and Canterbury-Bankstown area paying up to $1.70 for every minute saved during peak hours.
Areas including Hornsby and The Hills district see the highest total toll costs, potentially exceeding $29 per trip, while longer commutes through Camden and Ku-ring-gai areas typically offer better value, coming in at less than $1 per minute saved.
Off-peak travel can be even more expensive per minute, with costs potentially rising to $2.15 from Hornsby as the time saved decreases. Meanwhile, inner-city routes in areas such as Bayside, Burwood, and Canada Bay remain the most cost-efficient, typically less than $1.30 per minute saved.
Interestingly, the majority of the top ten suburban routes via free roads are much shorter than the toll-road corridors. These shorter stretches still take longer due to major bottlenecks that can build up traffic. With lower speed limits, frequent intersections, and heavy local traffic, drivers can face significant delays over very small distances, meaning short suburban corridors often can cause frustration.
Where Melbourne drivers pay the most for every minute saved from tolls
Melbourne drivers generally pay far less per minute saved than those in Sydney, but shorter inner-city routes in the Boroondara and Whitehorse areas remain the priciest, costing around $7.35 per minute saved during both peak and off-peak times.
Longer suburban commutes that go through the Whittlesea, Brimbank, and Casey areas can offer much better value, ranging between $1 and $2.50 per minute saved, thanks to extended travel distances and fewer toll segments.
During the off-peak hours, toll efficiency dips slightly, with drivers going through the Moonee Valley area typically saving about $4.22 per minute, while longer trips through the Yarra Ranges, Macedon Ranges, and Hume areas usually remain the most cost-effective at roughly $1.30 to $1.80 per minute.
“The findings highlight just how much Aussies are paying to use toll roads, which could cost them hundreds of dollars a month to help save time on the roads. While toll roads often provide safer conditions due to better road design, regular maintenance and less congestion, the cost can quickly add up. Toll prices vary across Australia, and so do car insurance rates, so it’s worth comparing car insurance policies regularly to ensure you’re getting a competitive deal, no matter where you live.”
Adrian Bennett
General Manager – General Insurance at iSelect
Written by:
Sarah Grealy
Digital Public Relations Specialist
0413 363 690
Sarah is our Digital Public Relations Specialist, and brings more than a decade of experience in the insurance comparison industry to iSelect.
With a passion for storytelling through data-driven insights, Sarah strives to empower Aussies with practical guides and tips.
About the data
To identify and compare Australia’s most expensive tolls, the toll roads generating the most revenue, and the suburbs most impacted by toll costs, iSelect combined official government data, operator disclosures, and toll pricing archives.
The research analysed toll prices across New South Wales, Victoria, and Queensland, focusing on four main areas:
1. Priciest Tolls (40%) –
Using data from state transport websites and official operator sources (Linkt, EastLink, CityLink, and West Gate Tunnel), we identified the maximum prices for each toll road trip. These were then standardised using official road lengths published by Transurban and other operators to calculate cost per kilometre.
2. Rising Toll Costs (25%) –
Historical toll price data was sourced from Linkt’s quarterly pricing updates, archived govia.com.au pages, and state gazette documents for NSW, Victoria, and Queensland. The Wayback Machine was used to retrieve older price data from 2017 onwards, allowing for comparison of percentage and dollar increases per year.
3. Toll Road Revenue (25%) –
Toll revenue and profitability data were gathered from Transurban investor presentations and annual reports, supported by government reports such as BITRE’s Road-Related Revenue and Expenditure for state-level context. For government-owned roads (e.g. Sydney Harbour Bridge, Toowoomba Bypass), data was verified using official parliamentary papers and media reports. For partially owned roads by Transurban, total revenue was predicted by estimating 100% of the revenue.
4.Most Expensive Suburbs for Tolls (10%) –
Using the Linkt Toll Calculator and Google Routes API, we modelled trips from suburb centroids to each city’s CBD—Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane. Toll costs were averaged for peak and off-peak hours and compared with free route alternatives. From this, we derived average toll costs per minute and relative cost burdens by suburb.
Example CBD reference points:
Sydney: 2 George Street, Sydney NSW
Melbourne: Federation Square, Melbourne VIC
Brisbane: King George Square, Brisbane, QLD
Data Normalisation
All monetary values were standardised to AUD (2025 prices) and adjusted for differences in road lengths and journey types. For multi-lane or directionally variable tolls, the maximum passenger vehicle rate was used. Toll lengths were verified using Transurban’s Roads and Projects dataset.
Where full data was unavailable, the closest available financial year or publicly reported revenue period was used. Archived and secondary data were validated against multiple sources to ensure consistency.
Geographic Boundaries
For suburb-to-CBD analysis, Local Government Area (LGA) boundaries were mapped to state road networks to identify relevant toll routes. While some LGAs overlap across regions (e.g. Parramatta to both Sydney CBD and Western Sydney corridors), routes were selected based on the shortest total travel time to ensure standardised comparison.
Data Sources
– NSW Government: Toll Costs by Road
– Victoria: EastLink, CityLink, and West Gate Tunnel Toll Pricing
– Queensland: Linkt Toll Pricing and govia.com.au (archived)
– Transurban: Roads and Projects, Investor Presentations, Annual Reports
– BITRE: Road-Related Revenue and Expenditure
– Gazette Archives: Historic Toll Pricing (VIC & QLD)
– Wayback Machine: Archived Toll Price Pages
– Media & Parliamentary Reports: Government Toll Revenues (Sydney Harbour Bridge, Toowoomba Bypass)
– Linkt Toll Calculator & Google Routes API: Used to model suburb-to-CBD toll costs
– Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS): Regional population and road network context
Notes & Limitations
This research reflects publicly available toll data for private passenger vehicles and does not account for heavy vehicle surcharges or time-based discounts. Toll roads with variable pricing structures (e.g. dynamic congestion pricing) were assessed using their maximum published rates.
Where older data was retrieved from web archives (via Wayback Machine), the most complete and verifiable snapshots were used.
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