In short
- From Hendra, OpenStreetMap routes you west through Legacy Way and the Centenary and Ipswich motorways onto the Warrego Highway, then up the range on Toowoomba Connection Road: about 133 km, just under two hours before traffic.[1]
- Two tolls are possible. Legacy Way, at the Brisbane end, is A$7.30 for a car and avoidable via Milton Road; the Toowoomba Bypass is A$3 for a car from 1 July 2026.[4][5]
- For central Toowoomba, the free range crossing is the direct way. The bypass, which heavy trucks crossing the range must use, suits trips past Toowoomba to the west.[5][3]
- In the CBD, the first 30 minutes of on-street parking are free if you start a session; after that meters are A$2.40 an hour at the time of writing (October 2026).[7]
- Unlimited kilometres: no kilometre limit and no charge per kilometre.
What's the route from Hendra to Toowoomba?
Toowoomba is the only one of the usual day trips that goes inland, and the route crosses Brisbane first. OpenStreetMap's fastest car route from 238 Nudgee Road to the Toowoomba city centre goes:[1]
- Kingsford Smith Drive and the Inner City Bypass, then the Legacy Way tunnel to the Western Freeway at Toowong.
- The Centenary Motorway south-west, then the Ipswich Motorway for about 11 km.
- The Warrego Highway (M2) for about 79 km, through the Lockyer Valley.
- Toowoomba Connection Road up the Toowoomba Range (about 13 km), arriving via Herries Street.
That's about 133 km and roughly 1 hour 50 minutes by the router's clock.[1] The Brisbane leg is where time goes: the western motorways carry heavy weekday traffic, so a mid-morning start usually beats a peak-hour one.
Can you avoid the Legacy Way toll?
Yes. Legacy Way costs a car A$7.30 at the time of writing (October 2026).[4] Routing the same trip through Toowong instead (Inner City Bypass, Hale Street, Milton Road, then the Western Freeway) adds about a kilometre and a few minutes on OpenStreetMap's estimate, and from there the route is identical.[2] Set your maps app to avoid tolls and it will normally pick this way; Milton Road gets congested in peak hours, which is when the tunnel earns its toll.
How tolls reach you in a rental, and how to switch tolls off in a maps app, are covered in tolls in Brisbane; the tunnels themselves are in Brisbane's toll tunnels.
Should you take the range or the Toowoomba Bypass?
Linkt describes the Toowoomba Bypass as a 41 km alternative crossing of the range, running from the Warrego Highway at Helidon Spa in the east to the Gore Highway at Athol in the west, via Charlton. Its interchanges are at Helidon Spa, Mort Street at Cranley, the Warrego Highway at Charlton and the Gore Highway at Athol.[6]
| Toowoomba Connection Road (the range) | Toowoomba Bypass | |
|---|---|---|
| Toll for a car | None; the Queensland Government says it has no plans to toll it[5] | A$3 from 1 July 2026, paid at the Cranley toll point east of the Mort Street interchange[5] |
| Trucks | Heavy vehicles (over 4.5 tonnes) crossing the range must use the bypass unless they have a local destination in Toowoomba or are using the New England Highway[5] | Built mainly as a freight route[5] |
| Suits | The city centre: the router's fastest route uses it[1] | Going past Toowoomba: to Charlton, the router follows the Warrego Highway onto the bypass from Helidon Spa, about 148 km from Hendra[3] |
The bypass toll is free-flow: there's no booth, and it rises each 1 July with Brisbane's consumer price index.[5] In a rental, a toll you don't pay yourself is handled the same way as a Brisbane one.
Either way you climb the escarpment, so on the way back down use a lower gear rather than riding the brakes, and leave a bigger gap than you would on the flat.
Where do you park in Toowoomba?
Toowoomba Regional Council says the CBD has eight off-street car parks and several on-street zones. At the time of writing (October 2026) its fees are:[7]
- Street meters (1P, 2P, 3P): A$2.40 an hour, 9am to 5pm on weekdays and 9am to 11.30am on Saturdays, not on public holidays. The first 30 minutes are free, but only if you start a session in the Toowoomba Parking app or at a meter when you arrive.
- Clifford Street, Chalk Drive and Herries/Water Street car parks: $2.40 an hour, at most $7 a weekday or $5.50 on a Saturday.
- Central car park: $1.20 an hour, for up to 3 hours.
- Central traffic area: a 3-hour limit applies Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm and Saturday 9am to 11.30am, including unsigned bays inside the boundary.
When your time is up you have to move the car; paying again in the same bay counts as feeding the meter and can be fined.[7] A parking fine on a rental follows the process in fuel, parking and fines.
What about the Carnival of Flowers?
Toowoomba's busiest visitor weeks are the Carnival of Flowers, which its organisers hold from September into early October each year, with floral displays open daily and feature events at weekends. The 2026 carnival ran from 18 September to 5 October.[8] Expect fuller car parks and slower traffic in town over those weekends, and check the carnival's own site for the next year's dates and event parking.
Before you set off
- Check QLDTraffic. It shows crashes, roadworks, flooding and truck restrictions, with traffic cameras along the way; the Queensland Government also points bypass road feedback there, or to 13 19 40.[9][5]
- Weather on the range. After heavy rain, check for flooding before you go; clause 7.2 of the rental terms rules out driving through floodwater, as well as off-road and unsealed driving beyond reasonable access.
- Unlimited kilometres: no kilometre limit and no charge per kilometre.
- Long day? Two hours each way plus the city is a real drive; long drives and fatigue has the rest-stop advice.
Sources
- OpenStreetMap (OSRM routing): Directions: 238 Nudgee Road, Hendra to Toowoomba city centre (car) (read 23 October 2026)
- OpenStreetMap (OSRM routing): Directions: Hendra to Toowoomba via Milton Road (car) (read 23 October 2026)
- OpenStreetMap (OSRM routing): Directions: Hendra to Charlton, west of Toowoomba (car) (read 23 October 2026)
- Linkt (Transurban): Toll pricing (read 23 October 2026)
- Queensland Government: Toowoomba Bypass tolling info (read 23 October 2026)
- Linkt (Transurban): Toowoomba Bypass (read 23 October 2026)
- Toowoomba Regional Council: Parking fees and maps for Toowoomba CBD (read 23 October 2026)
- Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers: Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers (read 23 October 2026)
- Queensland Government — Department of Transport and Main Roads: QLDTraffic (read 23 October 2026)
Written by the Rentzy team at Rentzy Car Rentals. Rentzy prices, fees and rules in this guide come from our published terms and update with them; rules set by others (roads, tolls, licences, transport) are from the official pages above, as read on the dates shown. Something out of date? Tell us.
