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 The location of Canberra within the ACT, Canberra's seven districts are shown in yellow, they are North Canberra, South Canberra, Woden Valley, Belconnen, Weston Creek, Tuggeranong, and Gungahlin.
The location of Canberra within the ACT, Canberra's seven districts are shown in yellow, they are North Canberra, South Canberra, Woden Valley, Belconnen, Weston Creek, Tuggeranong, and Gungahlin.
Canberra covers an area of 805.6 km² and is located near the Brindabella Ranges, approximately 150 km inland from Australia's east coast. It is located at altitudes that range from 550 m to 700 m above sea level. The highest point is Mount Majura at 888 m. Other large hills include Mt Taylor, Mt Ainslie, Mt Mugga Mugga and Black Mountain. The surrounding bushland and the original bushland that Canberra was built in is a mixture of eucalyptus savanna, scrubland, swamp and dry eucalyptus forests.
The Molonglo River flows through Canberra and has been dammed to form the body of water in the centre of the city called Lake Burley Griffin. The Molonglo then flows into the Murrumbidgee north-west of Canberra, which in turn flows north-west toward the New South Wales town of Yass. The Queanbeyan River joins the Molonglo River at Oaks Estate just within the ACT. A number of creeks, including Jerrabomberra and Yarralumla Creeks, flow into the Molonglo and Murrumbidgee. Two of these creeks, the Ginninderra and Tuggeranong, have similarly been dammed to form Lakes Ginninderra and Tuggeranong. Until recently the Molonglo had a history of sometimes lethal floods; the area was a flood plain prior to the filling of Lake Burley Griffin.
Climate
Because of its elevation and distance from the coast, Canberra has four distinct seasons. The climates of most Australian coastal areas, which include all the state capital cities, are moderated by the sea. Canberra is notorious for hot, dry summers, and cold winters with heavy Australian Bureau of Meteorology, January is Canberra's hottest month, with a mean daily maximum temperature of 27.7 °C — the highest recorded maximum temperature was 42.2 °C on 1 February 1968.[2] July is the coldest month, with a mean daily maximum of 11.2 °C and mean daily minimum of ?0.2 °C. The lowest recorded minimum temperature is ?10.0 °C on 11 July 1971. Light snow falls in the city in one out of approximately three winters but is usually not widespread and quickly dissipates. Thunderstorms can occur between October and March, and annual rainfall is 623 mm, with rainfall maximums in spring and summer (180.6 mm and 168.1 mm) and minimum in winter (128.1 mm). Autumn average rainfall is 146 mm.
Urban structure
 Inner Canberra demonstrates some aspects of the Griffin plan, in particular the Parliamentary Triangle.
Inner Canberra demonstrates some aspects of the Griffin plan, in particular the Parliamentary Triangle.
Main article: Suburbs of Canberra
Canberra is a planned city that was originally designed by Walter Burley Griffin, a major 20th century American architect. The city centre is laid out on two perpendicular axes: a water axis stretching along Lake Burley Griffin, and a ceremonial land axis stretching from Parliament House on Capital Hill north-eastward along ANZAC Avenue to the Australian War Memorial at the foot of Mt Ainslie. The area known as the Parliamentary Triangle is formed by three of Burley Griffin's axes, stretching from Capital Hill along Commonwealth Avenue to the Civic Centre around City Hill, along Constitution Avenue to the Defence precinct on Russell Hill, and along Kings Avenue back to Capital Hill.
The urban areas of Canberra are divided into seven districts. In chronological order of development, they are:
North Canberra, mostly settled in the 1920s and '30s, with expansion up to the 1960s, now 15 suburbs
South Canberra, settled from the 1920s to '60s, 13 suburbs
Woden Valley, settled in 1963, 13 suburbs
Belconnen, first settled in 1967, 25 suburbs
Weston Creek, settled in 1969, 8 suburbs
Tuggeranong, settled in 1974, 19 suburbs
Gungahlin, settled in the early 1990s, 5 suburbs to date
 View from Tuggeranong Hill, looking down into Tuggeranong Valley.
View from Tuggeranong Hill, looking down into Tuggeranong Valley.
Oaks Estate is a small suburb located near the ACT/NSW border; it is not part of any of the districts and has close ties with the neighbouring NSW town of Queanbeyan, of which it was originally a part before the ACT was separated from NSW in 1910. The North and South Canberra districts are based on Walter Burley Griffin's designs. The others are based on land contour design, each with a central shopping and commercial area known as the 'town centre'. The districts are typically separated from each other by natural parklands — some 30 Canberra Nature Parks in all. Although the urban development of Canberra after World War II did not follow Burley Griffin's plan, strict urban planning rules still govern the development in the city.
Many of Canberra's Page are named after biologists and naturalists. Most diplomatic missions are located in the suburbs of Yarralumla, Deakin and O'Malley. There are three light industrial areas: the suburbs of Fyshwick, Mitchell and Hume.
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 Many Canberrans are employed by Government departments such as the Australian Treasury.
Many Canberrans are employed by Government departments such as the Australian Treasury.
As of July 2005, there are 182,000 employed people in Canberra, and although labour shortages have been reported in some sectors, the unemployment rate is only 3.3%, well below the national unemployment rate of 5.0%.Australia wide average of $1,008.10.[5] The median house price in Canberra as of June 2005 was $352,500, lower than Sydney and Melbourne but higher than all other capital cities.[6] The median weekly rent paid by Canberra residents is higher than rents in all other states and territories. [7]
The city's main industry is government administration and defence, which accounted for 26.1% of Gross Territory Product in 2003–04 and employed over 40% of Canberra's workforce.[4] [8] The major public-sector employers in Canberra include the parliament, government departments such as Department of Defence, Finance, Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Treasury. A number of Australian Defence Force establishments are located in or near Canberra, most notably the Australian Defence Force headquarters and RAAF Fairbairn, which now almost exclusively services VIP flights. HMAS Harman is a naval communications centre located within Canberra that is being converted into a tri-service, multiuser depot.
Property and business services, construction, health and community services, and education are other significant contributors to the economy of Canberra. A large amount of Australian and international visitors make tourism a significant contributor to the economy. The most popular seasons are spring and autumn; the annual Floriade spring flower display in September is a major attraction.
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Health
 The Canberra Hospital
The Canberra Hospital
Canberra has two large public hospitals, the 500 bed Canberra Hospital located in Garran and the smaller 174 bed Calvary Public Hospital located in Bruce. Both public hospitals are also teaching hospitals. The largest private hospital in Canberra is the John James Memorial Hospital Hospital in Deakin. Calvary Private Hospital in Bruce and The National Capital Private in Garran are also major healthcare providers. The city has 10 aged care facilities. Canberra's hospitals receive emergency cases from throughout southern New South Wales. The ACT Ambulance Service is operated by the ACT Government's Emergency Services Agency.
Transport
 ACTION buses in Canberra
ACTION buses in Canberra
The car is by far the dominant form of transport in Canberra, due to the city's urban structure and the high income levels of its residents. Past planning policies have resulted in well developed good quality roads and a low population density spread over a relatively large area of the city. Canberrans enjoy excellent travel times over relatively large distances in comparison with other Australian capital cities. Traffic jams are few and any 'peak hour' congestion generally does not last longer than twenty minutes. Canberra's districts are generally connected by 'parkways' - limited access dual carriageway roads with speed limits generally set at 80km/h or 90km/h, The best example is the Tuggeranong Parkway which links Canberra's CBD and Tuggeranong, and bypasses Weston Creek. It is considered more a Freeway, than a dual carriageway road. In most districts, discrete residential suburbs are bounded by access roads.
 Aerial view of Canberra International Airport
Aerial view of Canberra International Airport
A publicly run bus service — ACTION, the Australian Capital Territory Internal Omnibus Network — provides comprehensive public transport throughout the city. A network of cycle ways has been established. Only 4.6% of the population use the bus system however, and 5.5% walk or cycle to work.[8] There is no urban rail network in Canberra.
A private bus service operates between Canberra and Melbourne are provided by way of a CountryLink bus service which connects with a rail service between Sydney and Melbourne in Yass, about one hour's drive from Canberra. Plans to establish a very fast train service between Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney have been contemplated, but not implemented, mainly because the large distances, modest populations, and cultural and political preference for road transport make the investment difficult to justify.
Canberra is about three hours by road from Batemans Bay, a popular holiday spot on the New South Wales coast, is reached via the Kings Highway.
Newcastle in New South Wales. Regular international flights have been considered, but to date only chartered international flights have connected Canberra directly with overseas destinations. The civilian airport shares runways with RAAF Base Fairbairn, which regularly receives international dignitaries and handles VIP flights such as those carrying federal ministers.
Utilities
 Telstra Tower is a Canberra landmark and tourist attraction in addition to providing telecommunications.
Telstra Tower is a Canberra landmark and tourist attraction in addition to providing telecommunications.
The ACT government owned ACTEW Corporation manages Canberra's water and sewerage infrastructure. ActewAGL is a joint venture between ACTEW and AGL, and is the retail provider of Canberra's utility services including water, natural gas, electricity, and also some telecommunications services via a subsidiary TransACT. Canberra's water is stored in four reservoirs, the Corin, Bendora and Cotter dams on the Cotter River and the Googong Dam on the Queanbeyan River. The Googong Dam is in New South Wales but it is managed by the ACT government. ACTEW Corporation owns Canberra's two wastewater treatment plants, located at Fyshwick and at Lower Molonglo on the Molonglo River.
Electricity for Canberra comes from the national power grid through substations at Holt and Fyshwick (via Queanbeyan). Some limited local renewable power is produced via a hydro generator on the main water supply pipeline for Canberra at Mount Stromlo and methane plants at waste landfill sites at Belconnen and Mugga Lane. The first domestic power supply in Canberra was in 1913 for the suburb of Acton. Unlike most Australian cities, the power poles in Canberra's older suburbs are located along the rear boundaries of residential housing lots rather than on the street front. In newer areas the power supply and communications cabling are located underground.
As in other parts of Australia, terrestrial and mobile telecommunications services are provided by a range of competing companies. The majority of the infrastructure is owned by Telstra but some is owned by TransACT (a Canberra-based communications company) as well as other providers.
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The location of Canberra within the ACT, Canberra's seven districts are shown in yellow, they are North Canberra, South Canberra, Woden Valley, Belconnen, Weston Creek, Tuggeranong, and Gungahlin.
The location of Canberra within the ACT, Canberra's seven districts are shown in yellow, they are North Canberra, South Canberra, Woden Valley, Belconnen, Weston Creek, Tuggeranong, and Gungahlin.
Canberra covers an area of 805.6 km² and is located near the Brindabella Ranges, approximately 150 km inland from Australia's east coast. It is located at altitudes that range from 550 m to 700 m above sea level. The highest point is Mount Majura at 888 m. Other large hills include Mt Taylor, Mt Ainslie, Mt Mugga Mugga and Black Mountain. The surrounding bushland and the original bushland that Canberra was built in is a mixture of eucalyptus savanna, scrubland, swamp and dry eucalyptus forests.
The Molonglo River flows through Canberra and has been dammed to form the body of water in the centre of the city called Lake Burley Griffin. The Molonglo then flows into the Murrumbidgee north-west of Canberra, which in turn flows north-west toward the New South Wales town of Yass. The Queanbeyan River joins the Molonglo River at Oaks Estate just within the ACT. A number of creeks, including Jerrabomberra and Yarralumla Creeks, flow into the Molonglo and Murrumbidgee. Two of these creeks, the Ginninderra and Tuggeranong, have similarly been dammed to form Lakes Ginninderra and Tuggeranong. Until recently the Molonglo had a history of sometimes lethal floods; the area was a flood plain prior to the filling of Lake Burley Griffin.
Climate
Because of its elevation and distance from the coast, Canberra has four distinct seasons. The climates of most Australian coastal areas, which include all the state capital cities, are moderated by the sea. Canberra is notorious for hot, dry summers, and cold winters with heavy Australian Bureau of Meteorology, January is Canberra's hottest month, with a mean daily maximum temperature of 27.7 °C — the highest recorded maximum temperature was 42.2 °C on 1 February 1968.[2] July is the coldest month, with a mean daily maximum of 11.2 °C and mean daily minimum of ?0.2 °C. The lowest recorded minimum temperature is ?10.0 °C on 11 July 1971. Light snow falls in the city in one out of approximately three winters but is usually not widespread and quickly dissipates. Thunderstorms can occur between October and March, and annual rainfall is 623 mm, with rainfall maximums in spring and summer (180.6 mm and 168.1 mm) and minimum in winter (128.1 mm). Autumn average rainfall is 146 mm.
Urban structure
Inner Canberra demonstrates some aspects of the Griffin plan, in particular the Parliamentary Triangle.
Inner Canberra demonstrates some aspects of the Griffin plan, in particular the Parliamentary Triangle.
Main article: Suburbs of Canberra
Canberra is a planned city that was originally designed by Walter Burley Griffin, a major 20th century American architect. The city centre is laid out on two perpendicular axes: a water axis stretching along Lake Burley Griffin, and a ceremonial land axis stretching from Parliament House on Capital Hill north-eastward along ANZAC Avenue to the Australian War Memorial at the foot of Mt Ainslie. The area known as the Parliamentary Triangle is formed by three of Burley Griffin's axes, stretching from Capital Hill along Commonwealth Avenue to the Civic Centre around City Hill, along Constitution Avenue to the Defence precinct on Russell Hill, and along Kings Avenue back to Capital Hill.
The urban areas of Canberra are divided into seven districts. In chronological order of development, they are:
North Canberra, mostly settled in the 1920s and '30s, with expansion up to the 1960s, now 15 suburbs
South Canberra, settled from the 1920s to '60s, 13 suburbs
Woden Valley, settled in 1963, 13 suburbs
Belconnen, first settled in 1967, 25 suburbs
Weston Creek, settled in 1969, 8 suburbs
Tuggeranong, settled in 1974, 19 suburbs
Gungahlin, settled in the early 1990s, 5 suburbs to date
View from Tuggeranong Hill, looking down into Tuggeranong Valley.
View from Tuggeranong Hill, looking down into Tuggeranong Valley.
Oaks Estate is a small suburb located near the ACT/NSW border; it is not part of any of the districts and has close ties with the neighbouring NSW town of Queanbeyan, of which it was originally a part before the ACT was separated from NSW in 1910. The North and South Canberra districts are based on Walter Burley Griffin's designs. The others are based on land contour design, each with a central shopping and commercial area known as the 'town centre'. The districts are typically separated from each other by natural parklands — some 30 Canberra Nature Parks in all. Although the urban development of Canberra after World War II did not follow Burley Griffin's plan, strict urban planning rules still govern the development in the city.
Many of Canberra's Page are named after biologists and naturalists. Most diplomatic missions are located in the suburbs of Yarralumla, Deakin and O'Malley. There are three light industrial areas: the suburbs of Fyshwick, Mitchell and Hume.
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Many Canberrans are employed by Government departments such as the Australian Treasury.
Many Canberrans are employed by Government departments such as the Australian Treasury.
As of July 2005, there are 182,000 employed people in Canberra, and although labour shortages have been reported in some sectors, the unemployment rate is only 3.3%, well below the national unemployment rate of 5.0%.Australia wide average of $1,008.10.[5] The median house price in Canberra as of June 2005 was $352,500, lower than Sydney and Melbourne but higher than all other capital cities.[6] The median weekly rent paid by Canberra residents is higher than rents in all other states and territories. [7]
The city's main industry is government administration and defence, which accounted for 26.1% of Gross Territory Product in 2003–04 and employed over 40% of Canberra's workforce.[4] [8] The major public-sector employers in Canberra include the parliament, government departments such as Department of Defence, Finance, Foreign Affairs and Trade, and Treasury. A number of Australian Defence Force establishments are located in or near Canberra, most notably the Australian Defence Force headquarters and RAAF Fairbairn, which now almost exclusively services VIP flights. HMAS Harman is a naval communications centre located within Canberra that is being converted into a tri-service, multiuser depot.
Property and business services, construction, health and community services, and education are other significant contributors to the economy of Canberra. A large amount of Australian and international visitors make tourism a significant contributor to the economy. The most popular seasons are spring and autumn; the annual Floriade spring flower display in September is a major attraction.
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Health
The Canberra Hospital
The Canberra Hospital
Canberra has two large public hospitals, the 500 bed Canberra Hospital located in Garran and the smaller 174 bed Calvary Public Hospital located in Bruce. Both public hospitals are also teaching hospitals. The largest private hospital in Canberra is the John James Memorial Hospital Hospital in Deakin. Calvary Private Hospital in Bruce and The National Capital Private in Garran are also major healthcare providers. The city has 10 aged care facilities. Canberra's hospitals receive emergency cases from throughout southern New South Wales. The ACT Ambulance Service is operated by the ACT Government's Emergency Services Agency.
Transport
ACTION buses in Canberra
ACTION buses in Canberra
The car is by far the dominant form of transport in Canberra, due to the city's urban structure and the high income levels of its residents. Past planning policies have resulted in well developed good quality roads and a low population density spread over a relatively large area of the city. Canberrans enjoy excellent travel times over relatively large distances in comparison with other Australian capital cities. Traffic jams are few and any 'peak hour' congestion generally does not last longer than twenty minutes. Canberra's districts are generally connected by 'parkways' - limited access dual carriageway roads with speed limits generally set at 80km/h or 90km/h, The best example is the Tuggeranong Parkway which links Canberra's CBD and Tuggeranong, and bypasses Weston Creek. It is considered more a Freeway, than a dual carriageway road. In most districts, discrete residential suburbs are bounded by access roads.
Aerial view of Canberra International Airport
Aerial view of Canberra International Airport
A publicly run bus service — ACTION, the Australian Capital Territory Internal Omnibus Network — provides comprehensive public transport throughout the city. A network of cycle ways has been established. Only 4.6% of the population use the bus system however, and 5.5% walk or cycle to work.[8] There is no urban rail network in Canberra.
A private bus service operates between Canberra and Melbourne are provided by way of a CountryLink bus service which connects with a rail service between Sydney and Melbourne in Yass, about one hour's drive from Canberra. Plans to establish a very fast train service between Melbourne, Canberra and Sydney have been contemplated, but not implemented, mainly because the large distances, modest populations, and cultural and political preference for road transport make the investment difficult to justify.
Canberra is about three hours by road from Batemans Bay, a popular holiday spot on the New South Wales coast, is reached via the Kings Highway.
Newcastle in New South Wales. Regular international flights have been considered, but to date only chartered international flights have connected Canberra directly with overseas destinations. The civilian airport shares runways with RAAF Base Fairbairn, which regularly receives international dignitaries and handles VIP flights such as those carrying federal ministers.
Utilities
Telstra Tower is a Canberra landmark and tourist attraction in addition to providing telecommunications.
Telstra Tower is a Canberra landmark and tourist attraction in addition to providing telecommunications.
The ACT government owned ACTEW Corporation manages Canberra's water and sewerage infrastructure. ActewAGL is a joint venture between ACTEW and AGL, and is the retail provider of Canberra's utility services including water, natural gas, electricity, and also some telecommunications services via a subsidiary TransACT. Canberra's water is stored in four reservoirs, the Corin, Bendora and Cotter dams on the Cotter River and the Googong Dam on the Queanbeyan River. The Googong Dam is in New South Wales but it is managed by the ACT government. ACTEW Corporation owns Canberra's two wastewater treatment plants, located at Fyshwick and at Lower Molonglo on the Molonglo River.
Electricity for Canberra comes from the national power grid through substations at Holt and Fyshwick (via Queanbeyan). Some limited local renewable power is produced via a hydro generator on the main water supply pipeline for Canberra at Mount Stromlo and methane plants at waste landfill sites at Belconnen and Mugga Lane. The first domestic power supply in Canberra was in 1913 for the suburb of Acton. Unlike most Australian cities, the power poles in Canberra's older suburbs are located along the rear boundaries of residential housing lots rather than on the street front. In newer areas the power supply and communications cabling are located underground.
As in other parts of Australia, terrestrial and mobile telecommunications services are provided by a range of competing companies. The majority of the infrastructure is owned by Telstra but some is owned by TransACT (a Canberra-based communications company) as well as other providers.
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